Dragon Bone
by Lithium Amaranth
Summary: Beast boy gets Raven a necklace...and finally gives her the ability to feel. As Raven exercises her new freedom, both Raven and Beast boy have a lot in store for them.
1. A necklace

**This is my first Teen Titans chapter Story. You don't have to be easy on the reviews okay. I want your honest opinion. Your constructive criticism is what makes me a better writer!**

**Please review.**

"Please Raven I insist!" Starfire pleaded, tugging at her dark friend's arm. Raven sighed and looked up at the Tamaranean irritably.

"Shopping isn't my thing, you know that. You and the others go without me. There's nothing I need." Raven replied monotonously, raising her book to read again. Starfire gave her a defeated look and walked up to the others, who were waiting by the door.

"Very well Raven. We shall return soon!" Starfire exclaimed.

"Whatever." was the reply

"You sure you don't want to come Raven?" Robin asked.

"I'm sure."

"Really? Cause a little fresh air outta do you good." Cyborg added. The vein in Raven's head throbbed dangerously. Why was everyone being so difficult? She suddenly felt her book fall from her hands and a small, adorable, little green cat jumped up onto her lap, looking up at her pleadingly.

"Ugh! Why are you all testing my patience like this!? And Beast boy….GET OFF ME!" she shouted as the little green cat began to rub his head against her stomach. She picked him up and threw him on the ground. The cat morphed back into a human and sat next to her on the couch.

"C'mon Raven, why don't you just come with us?"

"NO!" Raven screamed, her outburst not only caused the several titans to jump but also for the black aura covered windows to crack. She stood up, closed her book and fumed out the door. Beast boy frowned as she left.

"Why can't she just admit defeat and come with us?" he shouted.

"Chill BB, She's probably just in one of her moods." Cyborg said.

"When isn't she?" Beast boy asked sarcastically.

This caused the titans to smile a bit but Beast boy still held his frown.

"Let us proceed to the mall of shopping!" Starfire exclaimed. She took Robin's arm and dragged him out of the door. Cyborg laughed at Robin's slightly reddened face.

"Everyone knows that Rob's got the hots for Star. Dunno why he just doesn't ask her out." Cyborg chuckled. Beast boy shrugged.

"Yeah I guess it is kinda annoying when some people just don't have to guts to ask someone out." Cyborg raised his eyebrow.

"Heh, You're one to talk."

"Huh?" Cyborg rolled his eyes.

"Never mind, C'mon lets get to the mall before it's crammed with people and traffic's hell." he urged. Beast boy ran down the hall next to his cybernetic friend. He couldn't stop thinking about Raven and how angry he'd made her. He put the thought at the back of his mind as he jumped into the T-Car with Cyborg and they drove to the mall in silence.

--

Raven fell onto her bed and yelled in aggravation.

"Ugh! Why do I always have to break something when I'm this angry!" she shouted, fully aware that the titans were now gone. "No, why does HE always have to pester me about every little thing!" she screamed. She jumped slightly when a couple of her books encased in a black aura flew by.

"Relax. Your emotions are dangerous remember. Stay calm and meditate. Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…." she sighed. "My father is gone but my emotions still need to be controlled…Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…what I wouldn't give …to feel…"

--

"Okay team. Cyborg you take whatever is at the grocery store, I'll take Star clothes shopping (like anyone else would do it) and Beast boy you go get the meds." Robin ordered. Cyborg chuckled when Robin gave out the order that he was helping Star. Beast boy groaned at his task but shuffled his feet towards the Pharmacy. It always took forever for him them to get the right prescriptions and he also had to stop at the pet store to get most of his meds and Zoonotic medication (spreading diseases form animal to human). About an hour later he finally got all the meds he needed in about six bags full. He was heading back to the car to wait for the other titans when a strange yet familiar aroma met his nose. It smelt of leather books, chamomile and deep incense. He turned toward the smell quickly, expecting someone to be there.

"Raven?"

Nope. Instead he found a dark little shop with Indigo colored drapes in the window and a deep navy blue carpet. He wouldn't have noticed it there if he didn't have his ken sense of smell. Curiosity getting the better of him, he walked towards the little shop and stepped inside. It was a quiet store with shelves and shelves of leather bound books. He noticed a little café in the corner that served mostly herbal teas and fruit. He sniffed the air dreamily as he stepped in. This placed just screamed Raven's name. _'I wonder if she knows about this place,' _he thought. He was surprised to see that the shop wasn't as creepy as he thought it might be. Thought he hated that word. He could still remember how much he'd hurt Raven when he'd accidentally called her creepy. He didn't like to think about it, he would never be able to apologize enough. He then remembered how mad he'd made her that afternoon and instantly felt even more guilty. He looked around his surroundings again and got an idea.

"Maybe I can get Raven something to apologize, just a present." he said to himself. He immediately went over to the books and began browsing. He found a few titles that were interesting to him, and only him. He found _Guide to Mind Reading, How to use the Wigi Board, _and _Your Future, told in Tea Leaves. _He was going to have to pay a second visit but for now, he couldn't find anything else that he thought Raven would like or anything that he could understand. He was about to give up and head home when he passed by the cash register and found a small jewelry case next to the cashier. He browsed the collection, amazed. They weren't your average everyday gold encrusted diamond. They looked…

"Handmade." said a voice from behind the counter.

Beast boy looked up at the clerk.

"Excuse me?" Beast boy asked politely

"These little trinkets you're looking at are handmade."

"Yeah they're really cool. You made these?"

"Yep, made them with my own two hands."

"Wow. They're really beautiful."

The clerk raised his eyebrow at the green changeling and smiled.

"You know your friend comes in here often to read. And from what I've seen, she's a bit partial to that one over there." The clerk said pointing to the far end of the case.

Beast boy followed his finger to the piece that he was pointing at. Beast boy stood in awe at the glittering necklace. The stone was in the shape of a raven with it's head down and it's wings covering its body. The stone was unrecognizable but the deep purple velvet that lined the neck seemed to shimmer, as well as the gold link in the back. Beast boy didn't know how long he was staring at it before he finally asked.

"May I see that?" The clerk chuckled.

"I don't know what you were doing before but sure." The clerk joked. Beast boy got the joke and gave him a friendly smile.

The clerk took out the necklace and showed it to him.

"This stone is called Dragon Bone. Now it's not actual bone from a dragon of course, but it's rare. I found it on a hike through the Himalayas."

"You were in India?" Beast boy asked. He may not have been the smartest person in the world but when it came to Biology and Geography he was the master.

"Yep, I didn't even know what it was until I heard the local legend."

"Cool how much is it?" Beast boy asked.

"A little over three thousand. If you don't mind me asking, why are you so interested in it?" Beast boy looked away briefly, blushing as well. This did not go unnoticed by the clerk.

"Ahhh… I see… For your _Friend._" He emphasized the word friend but Beast boy didn't seem to notice.

"Yeah so uhhh…what was that legend you were talking about before?" he asked.

The clerk leaned on the table as if he was going to tell him a secret.

"According to ancient Indian tale, Dragon's Bone is enchanted. The Indians believed in deep meditation, and this," he said holding the necklace in front of him "was what helped them to control their emotions and help them reach the stage of enlightenment. But that's just a legend." he said, tucking away the necklace back into the case. Beast boy suddenly slapped down his credit card with a huge smile on his face.

"I'll take it!" she said excitedly. The clerk chuckled and accepted the card. Since the Titans had frequently been given awards for protecting the city, they were loaded. They did however, donate a great majority of it to charity and for essential things such as groceries. The clerk packaged up the necklace neatly in a black and blue box and handed it to Beast boy.

"Here you go. And tell raven Jerry says Hi." he said. Beast boy smiled, he seemed like a friendly old man with a lot of experience. Though he thought he heard Jerry mutter something about 'young love'. Beast boy disregarded it and ran towards the T-Car. He threw the meds in the back seat and flew home with the box in his talons. He couldn't wait to give Raven her present and hoped that maybe the legend was true, and if not then she got a nice looking necklace. You could hardly see Beast boy's large smile through his beak but he flew back to the tower with hope in his heart that Raven would love his gift.

--

Back at the tower.

Raven was slowly bringing herself out of her trance. "Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…" she muttered before she lowered herself back down on her bed and lay down, the fury from this afternoon was washing away as well as her consciousness. She quickly fell into a deep sleep on top of her satin sheet with her feet dangling off the side of her bed. She out like a light and didn't hear the knock coming form her door. _'Knock Knock Knock.'_

"Raven? Hey, it's me. Look I have something that I think you might like. Can you come out here so we can talk? Raven?" he put his ear next to her door and listened carefully. He could hear her slow breathing and her stable heartbeat. He was a little ticked off that Raven was ignoring him but he just felt more guilty about this afternoon. He probably deserved it.

"Okay, _I'LL _talk. Look, I'm sorry about annoying you earlier but I'm willing to make it up to you."

Silence.

"I got you a present. Something I know you'd really, really, really like!" he sang.

Silence.

"Raven! C'mon! I'm sorry okay, but just get your but out here it's important!" he shouted.

Silence.

"Fine Raven you want to ignore me than I'll make you listen!" he said in an aggravated tone. He punched in the code to her room and stomped in, only to almost immediately stop and stare at what was before him. Raven was sleeping soundly on her bed. His anger dying away as quickly as it had come, he chuckled to himself.

"Of course she was sleeping. Raven wouldn't completely ignore me like that." he whispered to himself. He walked over to her sleeping figure and smiled warmly. She looked so cute, her hands laid beneath her head, supporting it like a pillow. Her chest moving slowly in sync with her breath and her legs dangled lifelessly off the edge of her bed, yet her face was contorted into an expression of discomfort. He noticed that with half her body lying on her bed and half of it not, who wouldn't be uncomfortable, she also seemed to be getting a slight chill and pulling her cloak around her body more. Beast boy looked at the thermometer on the wall and notice that the A/C was kicking in. Beast boy looked around the room to make sure no one was there and he looked at Raven to make sure she was completely asleep. He set the box down on her night stand and pulled back the covers.

"Raven would kill me if she woke up right now." Beast boy muttered to himself. He slowly picked Raven up bridle style and carried her to the front of her bed. He had had a growth spurt in the last year and now stood an inch above Raven. He had also built up his body a little more so he was able to pick up her gentle figure with ease. Her face relaxed when he picked her up and she seemed to snuggle against his chest subconsciously, taking in the warmth from his body. He blushed slightly and set her back down on her bed. He brought the sheet back over her and tucked her in slightly. He set the box down next to her so it would be the first thing she saw when she woke up. He was heading beck toward the door when he heard her rustle beneath the sheets and mumble something.

"Beast boy."

He stopped dead in his tracks and waited for her to either yell at him or throw him out of her room. He braced for impact but it never came. He slowly turned around to see Raven still sleeping and her eyes twitching every now and then. He let out a sigh of relief. _'phew, she was just dreaming.' _He then blushed deeply as he felt the blood rise to his cheeks '_She was dreaming…about me!' _he thought. He exited her room with his cheeks still flushing. He couldn't help but feel smug that he was in her dreams and her face wasn't contorted in anger or disgust…it was a good dream. He entered the main room, still thinking about her sleeping form.

The titans were all going about their usual business. Cyborg was on the couch playing video games with Robin, and winning 20 to 4. Starfire was cooking in the kitchen and testing out her Tamaranean concoctions on Silkie (a.k.a the only one in the tower who could bear to eat them.) She looked up with concern to see Beast boy's rather heated face. She immediately flew up to him and nearly scared him to death.

"Ahhh! Star!"

"Beast boy are you well? You are looking rather…brown." Hearing this he immediately broke eye contact and blushed even further, even more now that the blush was affecting his normally green skin color so dramatically. Starfire began to pull his ears, feel his forehead, stretching his eyelids and tugging on his face.

"Perhaps you have come down with the earthly flu, or the fever." Starfire said, trying to play the role of the doctor.

"Ow, Starfire cut it out!" he yelled, desperately trying to regain his normal body temperature. Cyborg and Robin paused the game and looked over the couch to see Beast boy shying away to the table.

"hmmm…why so flushed BB?" Cyborg said suspiciously. Beast boy had taken this chance to calm down and his face cooled down almost immediately.

"Huh? Whatdya mean?" he asked innocently

"ooooo I get it?" Cyborg teased.

"get what?"

"We lost you at the mall. Getting friendly with the ladies are we?" Beast boy couldn't help but let out a laugh of relief at Cyborg's assumption.

"Ummm…yeah…heh…ladies love to pointy ears." he lied

"Heh, yeah right. What was I thinking, you couldn't get a date even if you were a superhero….wait a minute…I think you are!" Cyborg and Robin burst out laughing. Starfire proceeded with her cooking. She never understood what they were talking about when they teased Beast boy like this.

"Dude! I could totally get a date from any girl!" Beast boy shouted defensively.

"Oh really?" Cyborg replied unconvinced. "wanna bet?

"You're on!" Beast boy agreed. "okay, so let's go to the mall and check out…"

"ah, ah, ah" Cyborg sang " you said you could get date from any girl right?"

"Yeah so?"

"Sooo, the girl I have in mind isn't at the mall."

Beast boy gulped "Okay…so…who's the lucky gal?" he asked nervously, fearing for one particular name to pop up.

"I want you to ask out…" then he leaned in to whisper…Starfire!"

"No way dude! I'm not asking out Rav--wait, what?"

Cyborg snickered "That's right ask her out. There were no terms on whether they were alien or not" Beast boy shook his head.

"Nuh uh, no way dude. Robin'll mess me up more than Raven would and who knows what Star will do!" He protested.

Cyborg put a hand to his chin "So you're saying you'd rather ask out Raven?"

"Yes…I mean…"

"Ha! Alright bet's on! You're going to ask out Raven!"

"Cy, please tell me you recorded the whole thing!" Robin laughed from the couch. He apparently didn't hear the bit about Starfire.

"Wait…what?" Beast boy asked. Cyborg sighed.

"I just asked you to ask out Raven and you accepted. Game On!" he shouted, almost giddy

"Hey I didn't say…"

"Need I replay it?" he asked, hitting a few buttons on his arm and replaying his and Beast boy's voices over and over again.

'So you're saying you'd rather ask out Raven?'

'Yes…' replay

'Yes…' replay

'Yes…' replay

'Yes…' replay

'Yes…' replay

"Okay I get it!" Beast boy shouted. Cyborg moved in so Robin wouldn't hear

"Okay so when are you going to do it?" he asked seriously

"I'm not okay…bet's off" Beast boy snapped. He hated that not only had he been tricked but he had been tricked to ask out the one girl that hates him the most.

"Sure, whatever you say dude but seriously man, you should just ask her out."

"What are you talking about?"

"Do I have to spell it out for you? Man, I know you like Raven"

"Of course I do, we're friends aren't we?"

Cyborg rolled his eyes "Will you stop beating around the bush! I meant you really _like _her." he said putting an emphasis on 'like'. It took Beast boy a minute to register what he was saying. Once he did he felt an oncoming blush and tried to hide it from his mechanical friend, but unfortunately nothing gets past Cyborg.

"See man you're blushing! Just tell her how you feel."

"Dude! I do NOT have a crush on Raven!" he said a bit too loudly. Robin turned around and Starfire looked up form her cooking. Beast boy felt all eyes on him and began to blush even deeper.

"Yo, denial does not look good on you." Cyborg said, ignoring the others.

"There's nothing to be in denial about! I do not like her that way!" he whispered so Robin and Starfire didn't hear. With that he left the room to go to his own. Cyborg shook his head.

"What was that all about?" Robin asked.

"Why is friend Beast boy upset?" Starfire asked, turning off the stove and abandoning her alien dishes. She flew over to the couch and sat down next to Robin. Cyborg headed towards them as well, shaking his head.

"I confronted him about Raven." he said

"What about Raven?" Robin asked.

"Please, is she unwell also?" Starfire asked concerned. Cyborg just gave them a look like they were crazy.

"You mean you guys don't see it? BB's crushing on Raven?"

Robin's eyes went wide behind his mask and he slapped his hand on his forehead. How could he…Robin…miss this? Once he thought about it, it was so obvious. Beast boy's constant attempts to make Raven laugh, his determination to impress her, why he's been reading his comics more than watching T.V. It all made sense now! Starfire gasped at what Cyborg said. She of course thought that he was being literal.

"Why does friend Beast boy wish to crush Raven? I know they do not get along but why would he wish to harm her?"

Cyborg and Robin let out and uneasy chuckle.

"No Star On Earth when you have a crush on them that means you like them."

"Oh…well in that case, have a crush on you Robin."

Robin immediately began to blush and break out in a cold sweat.

"…and you as well Cyborg…" Starfire added.

Cyborg looked at her confused then chuckled while Robin gave him a death glare.

"No Star, when we say that Beast boy has a crush on Raven, we mean that he like, _likes _her. As in he likes her more than a friend." It took Starfire a little longer than Beast boy to realize what Cyborg was saying. Once she did she gasped and flew around the room.

"Oh Glorious! Perhaps Raven may share the romantic feelings for Beast boy as well!"

"Uh…not so sure about that Star." Robin said.

"Oh but I hope so, would that not be marvelous?"

" I guess so Star but I'm going to have to confront Beast boy about it first." Robin replied

"Why?" Cyborg asked

"Just need to see this for myself." he smirked

Beast boy slammed his door and began pacing around in circles. He was practically pulling his hair out of it's follicles. He fell onto the bottom bunk of his bed and moaned. "What does he know? I don't have a crush on Raven!"

'_Are you sure?' _a voice inside him said

"Oh great, now I'm going crazy."

'_Just tell Raven how you feel.' _

"I don't feel anything other than friendship."

'_You like her.'_

"No I don't"

'_You want to hold her.'_

"No I don't."

'…_kiss her…'_

"Shut up!"

'_Not until you talk to her' _

"Ugh! This is useless. I'm going to sleep now!"

'_Fine, good luck with that.'_

Beast boy ended the conversation with his mind. He wasn't really tired but as soon as he hit that pillow, a wave of laziness swept over him. He relaxed into his bed and thought about the one person that, in his conscious mind, he wouldn't allow to think about, Raven. He fell into a light slumber with a smile on his face, thinking about her, her face, her personality, the way she talks, the way her pale skin seems to glow when the sun hits it just right and the way she would react when she finds the necklace that will give her the ability to feel…for the first time.


	2. Raven's Idea

Raven was beginning to stir about an hour after she had fallen asleep. She slowly opened up her eyes and sat up. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and noticed something different about hr sheets, as if someone had tucked her in. Her hand bumped into something sitting on her bed. It was a small navy blue box. She looked around her room, thinking that this was one of Beast boy's ridiculous pranks. She opened the box cautiously and looked inside. She instantly recognized the necklace and observed it curiously.

"Oh my….but who?" She looked around her room again as if hoping to find the one who gave it to her. She had heard the legend but she feared that that's what it was…a legend. She was afraid to get her hopes up and then be disappointed. She took in a deep breath and let it our slowly. Whoever gave this to her must have been one of the titans. Starfire? No, she never would have gone into such a dark place like Jerry's. Robin? No he was probably clothes shopping with Starfire. Cyborg? He wouldn't waste time looking for presents. Beast boy? Definitely not but plausible. Not likely…especially not after she yelled at him this afternoon, but who else could it have been? She smiled to herself, even blushed at the thought. She kind of felt something towards the little changeling. Ever since they met she knew she liked him as a friend. He was the first one to accept her as a friend. She thought that this attraction was either a mere infatuation like Malchior was or her stupid teenage hormones. Either way she knew it would go away, but at times this new emotion would run wild when she thought about him. It scared her at times and she didn't know why her emotions behaved the way they did around him. She looked upon the necklace with interest and held it tightly in her hands.

"I hope those legends are true." she whispered to no one in particular. She closed her eyes tight, not sure what to expect. She fastened the gold chain around her neck and waited. Nothing. She didn't feel any different, any liberty, any freedom from emotional bounds…nothing. She sighed in disappointment and lay down on her bed.

"I should have known it wouldn't work." she sighed. She closed her eyes but then opened then again to see a whit blinding light emanating from her collar bone. The necklace was glowing and she didn't know if it was working or if it as just her powers. Suddenly a wave of pain swept over her mind and body. She felt every emotion possible in only three minutes. Tears flowed from her eyes as the pain swept over her body again and again, from each unbridled emotion that was washing over her. She wasn't used to this freedom and she clutched her head and let out a blood curdling scream that echoed through the entire tower.

"Raven!" Robin shouted from outside her door. Starfire didn't waste time talking however. She burst through the door , ripping it off it's hinges. He gasped at the sight of Raven holding her head on her hands and knees, crying. She saw the light emitting from the necklace and reached out to grab it but Raven stopped her.

"No" she gasped "leave it."

"Raven it is causing you pain! I must dispose if it!"

"Trust me Star, leave it and I'll be fine." She passed out and the light disappeared. Robin was kneeling next to Starfire and Raven.

"What Happened!" Cyborg shouted as he and Beast boy raced to Raven's unconscious form. Robin noted the necklace and reached to remove it but Starfire stopped his hand.

"Raven has told me not to remove it. I don't know why but she did." Starfire insisted.

"So this necklace caused whatever happened to her?" he asked. Starfire nodded.

Beast boy looked upon his friend feeling ashamed. He was the one that gave her the necklace.

"C'mon ya'll. We gotta get her to the med lab. I know she hates it there but we have to make sure she's okay." Cyborg said.

--

Cyborg placed her fragile body on one of the medical beds and watched her as she began to hover into one of her healing trances. (A/N: even though she isn't technically hurt).

"She will be alright?" Starfire asked.

"Yeah she should be fine. I'm not picking up any damage but just in case, we should keep an eye on her." Cyborg replied.

"Good. Can you let us know when she's awake?" Robin asked very leader like.

"Sure, you two can go. BB can you help me with the IV monitor and equipment?"

"Yeah." He said. Reluctantly, Starfire and Robin walked out of the med bay and into the common room. Robin was going to have to do some serious talking to calm Starfire down.

Cyborg handed Beast boy some small suction cups with wires attached to them. Beast boy looked at Raven in worry and guilt. He knew that it was his fault Raven was like this.

"Don't worry B, she's just exhausted. The necklace didn't do anything to hurt her physically." Cyborg reassured with a smile. Beast boy looked up slightly relieved.

"Okay so, where do these go?" he asked, motioning to the suction cups.

"Those go on her temples…you do know what those are right?" he smirked

Beast boy rolled his eyes. He wasn't a genius like Cyborg or as clever as Robin but he wasn't stupid. He didn't answer as he placed the wired suction cups on her forehead. Then he looked at his metallic friend rather smugly.

"Alright smarty, you take care of these and I'll take care of the needles." he said, handing Beast boy numerous suction cups and wires while he rolled the sleeves of Raven's leotard up and stuck in one needle. Beast boy almost gagged at the blood Cyborg was taking from her.

"Okay B those large ones go on her limbs." he instructed. Beast boy did as he was told and stuck the largest suction cups on her arms and legs. When he finished, Cyborg grabbed the remaining two from Beast boy.

"Maybe I should take care of these." he said nervously. Beast boy shook his head and took them back.

"Why? Cause you don't think I'm smart enough to know where they go? I'll have you know that I can do this easy peasy. Just tell me where they go."

Cyborg smirked and gave his green friend and gave him a devilish grin. Beast boy didn't like the looks of that grin and he hoped that the cups didn't go…

"On her chest." Cyborg smirked.

Beast boy suddenly felt his face get very hot which showed tremendously. Beast boy's face was even browner than when he appeared in the common room. He swallowed his spit hard.

"Uhhh…maybe…you should…"

"Oh no, no I insist. Just put them anywhere below her collar bone."

"…erm…okay…" Beast boy said nervously. He placed his hands over her chest, trying to find a place to put the monitor cups

"Well, I'm waiting." Cyborg chuckled.

Beast boy flushed even harder when he saw her chest moving up and down with her breathing. He closed his eyes out of nervousness though Cyborg thought it was for an entirely different reason.

"What's the matter BB? Getting a little distracted are we?"

"Dude. Shut it!" Beast boy shouted and he tossed Cyborg the wires. He attached them without hesitation and with ease. He raised his eyebrow to a fuming Beast boy.

"Alright we should probably alternate shifts and keep an eye on her. I'll take the first shift and let you guys know if she wakes up." Beast boy shook his head.

"No, I'll stay here, you go tell Star she's okay."

"Well…okay. Let us know if anything happens."

"Duh."

When Cyborg left Beast boy hung his head in shame. He felt extremely guilty about what happened and even more guilty that he couldn't do anything to help her. He sat down in the chair next to her and held his head in his hands with his elbows propped up on his knees.

"What have I done?" he said to himself. He sat next to Raven, gazing at her peaceful state. She wasn't in anymore pain but Beast boy still felt like he hurt her.

"What is she gonna say? She probably knows that I gave it to her and thinks that it was some sick prank or something…I'm sorry Raven." he mumbled.

Beast boy couldn't bear to look at her anymore. He was so grieved that he didn't notice Raven lowering herself down on the bed and he certainly didn't notice the smile on her unconscious lips and the raven necklace…had it's wings spread.

--

Raven began to moan slightly and her smile disappeared. Her headache had returned but it wasn't as bad as it was before. She slowly opened her eyes to find the familiar room of the med bay. She clutched her head in agony as she heard Cyborg's booming voice over the intercom.

"Yo! Get down here she's awake!" he called.

"On our way" Robin replied.

Cyborg walked over to Raven and put a hand on her shoulder. He and Beast boy had switched shifts about an hour ago.

"Hey girl don't scare us like that." he chuckled

"Ugh…sorry" was all she managed to say before the other three came rushing in.

"Raven are you okay?" Robin asked.

Raven took some time to adjust before answering. She realized that she was on one of the medical beds in the med bay. She looked around to see her four friends standing around her bed.

"I'm fine" she said in an almost upbeat fashion. This not only surprised her friends but her as well.

"Ummm…friend? Are you certain that you are well." Starfire asked, concerned.

Raven smiled slightly, knowing that the necklace had worked. "Yes Starfire. I feel the best that I've ever had in my life."

At this Beast boy's ears perked up and he stood next to Starfire who was near the head of the bed.

"So do you feel…anything?" he asked shyly. He didn't want to give out that he was the one who got her the necklace but this did not fool Raven.

"Beast boy…did you…" he merely turned away guiltily. There was no getting past her. Raven felt herself well up and before she knew it she had gotten up and thrown herself at him in a loving embrace. Beast boy was shocked at this and debated on what he should do next. He went with his instincts and hugged her back. She dug her face into the crook of his neck and cried happy tears. As soon as Beast boy felt her tears on his skin he immediately flushed and looked around the room. Nothing had exploded, nothing was in a black aura, everything was…normal. Well, except for the crying girl in his arms. He pulled away from her and looked her in the eyes, ignoring the awkward stares form the other titans.

"Does…does it work?" he asked.

Raven looked up at him with slightly red eyes. They were a little puffy but there they were, the beautiful violet eyes that he had come to adore so much. His heart went a flutter as he saw her smile and nod. He couldn't help the smile on his lips. Hers was beautiful. It was a rare occasion and that's what made it special. It was genuine, not forced. It was the same one she wore when they first met. That smile would be engraved in his memory forever.

As soon as she nodded Beast boy felt his heart warm. This time it was his turn to hug her. He was so excited that he had done something right for once. He lifted her up and spun her around. She held him tightly and laughed, completely forgetting about their friends.

"Thank you Beast boy. You have no idea how much this means to me." she sighed when he put her down.

"I think I do. You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you laugh." he replied. Raven blushed as well as Beast boy. They were still smiling at each other but they stepped apart, finally realizing that they were not alone in the room.

The other three were trying to register what had just happened. Was Raven laughing and hugging Beast boy?Finally Robin snapped out of it and approached the two.

"What's going on here?" he demanded

"Uhhh…well…I…" Raven started

"Yes please, do explain, I am most confused." Starfire said.

"Well, you see…" Beast boy began.

"C'mon man what the heck is going on?" Cyborg asked, just as peeved as Robin.

"Will you just shut up and listen!" They both shouted together. Beast boy was startled by this but Raven just rubbed her temples. When everyone was quiet she began.

"This necklace is made of Dragon Bone…and yes it is bone from an actual dragon."

"…wait, I though it wasn't." Beast boy interrupted.

"Jerry doesn't believe in dragons so that's why he told you that. Anyway…this necklace helps me control my powers. I can feel emotions now." she said.

It only took a moment of silence for the titans to take in this new information. Starfire squealed with delight and gave Raven her signature, rib cracking hug.

"OH RAVEN I AM THRILLED OT HEAR THAT YOU MAY DO THE FEELING OF THE EMOTIONS. THIS IS WONDERFUL IS IT NOT?"

Raven took the hug gratefully and took a deep breath, knowing that it may be a while before Star lets go.

"Well, I suppose that's why you hugged BB after you got up. You sure must have been happy." Cyborg said. Raven and Beast boy both blushed a little. This did not go unnoticed by Robin.

"Is there something that we don't know about?" he asked suspiciously.

"No…it's just…I kinda was the one who gave her the necklace." Beast boy replied shyly.

Starfire released Raven and turned to Beast boy.

"Friend that was a most sugary gesture!" she squealed. Beast boy only looked at her confused.

"I think she means sweet…and she's right, it was…thanks." Raven said, still blushing a bit.

"Anytime." Beast boy replied a little softer. Another silence followed. Cyborg coughed loudly to break the awkward tension.

"So it sounds like we got a celebration on our hands! How about we all go out for pizza?" he asked. The others nodded in agreement.

"Yes! Yes! We must do the celebrating of Raven's new freedom!" Starfire shouted. She took Raven's arm and flew out the door. Beast boy chuckled and Robin and Cyborg turned to him.

"So…you got her a necklace…why?" Robin asked smirking. Beast boy was taken aback by this question. "Why did you get her the necklace?" he asked again. Beast boy broke out in a cold sweat and looked away.

"Honestly…I just found this dark little store and found it there. Jerry the clerk guy told me the story and I thought it would be good for her." Robin and Cyborg both raised their eyebrows.

"BB you do remember our little talk before right?" Cyborg smirked.

"Yeah and will you shut up about it and…you told him!" Beast boy shouted, looking from Cyborg to Robin.

"Well, duh I told Rob. Besides, everyone knows you like her already."

"Well, I don't…not like that at least." he said this last part under his breath.

"Beast boy, in all seriousness, do you like Raven?" Robin asked, his smirk disappearing as well as Cyborg's

Beast boy took a minute to think about this question. He really didn't know himself. Part of him was saying of course not! Raven's just his friend! Besides, she's a dark, creepy, quiet empath who hates his guts, why would he ever like her? But then another part of him was saying that the other side was dead wrong. That he knew she wasn't creepy. Dark yes, quiet yes but he also knew that she didn't hate him and he didn't hate her. He could never hate her. He could try but he would never succeed. Something about her. This part of him told him that he did think she was attractive…no…beautiful, and her sarcasm gave her a certain spunk, and she wasn't really dark as much as…mysterious. He found her mystery very appealing. He always tried to get to know her better, to get her out of her shell, to get her to laugh, to get her to show that gorgeous smile…her smile…oh god her smile! He could stare at her smile for hours, maybe even days on end. Maybe he did feel something more than friendship towards her. Now that he thought about it, accepting his crush was a lot less stressful than living in denial. Oh man this is going to be complicated! He began to smile weakly and blush. Before he even knew what he was saying he blurted out.

"Yeah." Silence followed. Robin's and Cyborg's eyes grew wide and their mouths gaped unattractively. Beast boy was still a little lost in his thought before he realized that he had just admitted his feelings for Raven in front of Cyborg and Robin. His smile faded away and he looked up at their shocked faces. He was prepared for any ridicule that may come but it never did. He waited another second before he was pulled into a brotherly headlock by Cyborg.

"What did I tell ya man? What did I tell you?" He laughed.

"Hey get off! Beast boy shouted as Cyborg began to crush his windpipes with out really knowing it. He released his green friend and smiled nervously.

"Sorry man, just excited for ya that's all."

"Thanks" Beast boy replied shyly.

"Well whatever you decide to do from here is none of our business. We better go catch up with the girls. Good Luck." Robin said patting Beast boy on the back as he left toward Starfire.

"Yeah come on B. Wouldn't want that nasty tofu pizza getting cold now do we?" Cyborg chuckled.

"Awe. Shut up!" Beast boy laughed, happy that his friends were taking this crush he had on Raven seriously and weren't threatening to tell anyone. The two ran down to the garage and Cyborg took his rightful place in the driver's seat while Beast boy took a seat next to Raven.

--

Once they had found a table, Cyborg began to name all the toppings that he wanted on the pizza. He looked around for everyone's approval. Starfire agreed (she drowned all her slices in mustard anyway). Robin always agreed with Starfire and Raven didn't really care. They all awaited Beast boy to object but he didn't, the others began to stare a hole in him and he was feeling a little awkward now.

"What?" he asked

"Beast boy, are you not going to object Cyborg's many choices of meats on the pizza?" Starfire asked.

"Actually no. We all know that I'm never going to eat meat, and that he's never eating anything without it so I'll just get an individual veggie pizza. Are you guys okay with that?"

"Uh…yeah…that's fine…" Robin said.

"Cool! I'll go order." Beast boy replied with a smile. He got in line by the register while the other titans discussed what just happened.

"Something seems…wrong with Beast boy." Starfire said.

"Yeah, he's acting…mature!" Raven said, slightly surprised and mildly impressed.

"Don't think that would have anything to do with his little C-R-U-S-H?" Cyborg whispered to Robin.

"I dunno. He might be trying to impress Raven or grow up or something but he seems fine to me." Robin whispered back.

"Yes he does seem to be acting that way. Perhaps he is going through male puberty." Starfire said in response to Raven's comment, and obviously not hearing the boy's whispering. Raven suddenly blushed but didn't feel like she needed or wanted to put her hood up. Now that her emotions were free she felt a little more brave. She had gotten an image of Beast boy with longer hair, a little more muscle definition and thanks to a recent growth spurt, he had actually surpassed her in height. She shook the blush off and rolled her eyes.

"I don't really think that's the reason and if it is, then can we talk about something else other than Beast boy's maturing body?"

"Is that what you guys talk about when I'm not around?" Beast boy asked from behind, sounding mildly surprised and a little embarrassed. Raven blushed a deep red and tried to hide her tinged face from Beast boy who was also blushing a strange shade of brown. Cyborg, Starfire and Robin all chuckled at this scene. Beast boy extended his arm past Raven's head and practically threw the pizza across the table.

"Here's your pizza topped with the animal entrails." Beast boy joked, taking his seat next to Raven and opening up his own veggie pizza. Cyborg opened up the larger box and ate several slices ravenously. Beast boy was about to bite down on his slice but decided against it. He decided to chit chat for now.

"So, what _were _you guys taking about before?" he asked cocking his eyebrows at Raven. She merely rolled her eyes in response.

"I overheard part of it. My maturing body? You checking me out Raven?" he joked. The other titans were now fearing that Raven would send him into the ocean for saying that but she smiled and rolled her eyes again.

"You? Hardly. If anyone it's Cyborg who's got the hotts for you." She replied. She couldn't believe she was saying this. It just seemed too out of character for her but not even her reputation was going to bring her down. She was just having too much fun. Fun…she never got to feel before because of her powers. Cyborg frowned at her and Beast boy cracked up laughing. Starfire giggled and Robin nearly threw up his entire pizza slice he was laughing so hard. Raven even cracked a grin.

"Rae I think that necklace is the best thing's that's ever happened! I never knew you had a sense of humor!"

"Neither did I." she chuckled.

"Sooo…Raven…What do you feel like doing now that you can let your emotions out?" Cyborg asked. Raven looked up at him for a moment.

"Well I did have one idea but I don't want to bother you guys with it." she said casually.

"Great, Now we really want to hear it! C'mon I'm sure it's fine." Beast boy reassured.

"No…it sounds really selfish." She said somewhat shyly.

"Why do you wish to sell fish?" Starfire asked.

"No Star. Raven's saying that whatever she's thinking, she'll get all the benefit." Robin explained.

"And why shouldn't she? Dude you have a right to be selfish Rae!" Beast boy exclaimed. Raven looked at him quite surprised.

"It's Raven…and what do you mean?"

"What do I mean? You deserve to be selfish! One; you've had to live your whole life with your emotions bottled up, Two; you saved the whole damn UNIVERSE! And Three; you're one of the most selfless people I know. Trust me, whatever it is, consider it done." Beast boy said.

Raven was ultimately astounded that he had come up with that. He could not be that boy that was bothering her early that afternoon. In a course of only a few hours, the annoying green teenager she has come to know over the years has just matured about 5, and with her as the witness. She smiled at him.

"I didn't know you were a philosopher."

"A who?"

Raven rolled her eyes still smiling. "Anyway, I was thinking since you four have different personalities and show different emotions, maybe I could spend one whole day with each of you, only if you want to though. I just think that this way would be a good way to exercise my emotions."

Starfire couldn't contain her glee. She sprung up from her seat and hugged Raven as tightly as possible with out crushing her.

"Oh Raven this is most wondrous! We may go to the mall of shopping and paint one another's nails, and perform the braiding upon one another's hair, travel to 'the Spa', have a party of the slumbers…"

"Gasp Sure Starfire…whatever you want…but you have to let me go!" She gasped. Starfire released her and clapped giddily. Robin and Cyborg were mildly shocked that Raven…loner, unsociable…Raven wanted to spend time with them! Cyborg looked over at Beast boy and realized that Beast boy wasn't looking at Raven. In fact he was trying to hide his face from her. Cyborg noticed a slight tint on his cheeks.

"Yo B, here's your chance…" he whispered so no one else would hear "…you and Raven…together…alone…all day…"

"Dude Shut up!" he whispered back. He would happily spend one whole day with Raven alone but he was a little nervous about it.

"Well that sounds good to me." Robin said happily, not hearing Cyborg and Beast boy's conversation.

"So…how do you want to do it?" Cyborg asked.

"I was thinking I could spend the day with Robin tomorrow, Starfire the next day, then you, then Beast boy on Friday." she replied.

Beast boy gulped _'She's saving me for last?' _he thought.

"Is that okay with you?" she asked, turning to Beast boy. Beast boy looked up at her with a cocky grin on his face.

"Totally!" he said a bit too quickly and loudly. Robin and Cyborg cocked their eyebrows at him but Raven simply smiled. They all continued to talk and eat their pizza and…er…mustard…while discussing what they were going to do the following week.


	3. Tuesday

Raven woke at the expected time the next day. Today was Raven's day with Robin and boy was she excited! (A/N: note sarcasm). The boy wonder never really did anything interesting. He mainly did crime files, training schedules, status checks on the villains at the county jail, work out, spend time with Starfire, and play videogames with Beast boy and Cyborg.

She walked down the hall towards the common room where she and Robin would have breakfast and apparently get down to business, seeing as he didn't do too much else. Starfire was playing with Silkie so she was cancelled out. She assumed Beast boy and Cyborg would be consumed with videogames and plus it was Tuesday. Every Tuesday he would organize his crime files and check up on the villains at the prison. This day was going to be fun….ugh. Well, at least she was able to feel. That was the whole point of doing this. Maybe she could learn a little more about her team mates and teach them a bit about her if they asked.

The doors to the common room opened with a hiss and Raven walked in. She saw Robin sitting on at the table sipping his coffee and reading the paper. He turned around to see Raven walking over to the counter.

"Morning Raven!" he said…a little too cheery. The whole tower knew that Robin was a morning person. He and Star were probably the only ones in the entire city!

"Morning." she said nonetheless. "Are you going to have more of this or could I have a cup?" she asked, indicating the coffee pot. Robin shook his head.

"No. Go ahead. I didn't know you drink coffee." he said, turning back to his paper.

"I don't. I'm just experimenting." she said, taking a seat on the far end of the couch.

"So what do you want to do today?" he asked.

"Whatever you want. Remember, the whole point is for me to do something different."

"I know but I don't want you to be completely bored either. I mean, most of the stuff I do is paperwork and leader stuff. I always find time to hang out with you guys but basically. My free time is work." he replied.

"That's okay with me. Maybe I could help you, and get it done a lot faster." she offered.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I wouldn't be offering if I didn't want to."

"Thanks. You're like the sister I never had." Robin said.

"And you're like my brother. So what do you usually do after breakfast?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

"Well, I'm thinking of organizing the crime files and checking on the prison and see how the villains are holding."

'_Yep, just an average Tuesday.' s_he thought.

The doors to the common room swished open and Cyborg and Starfire walked in. They were speaking Tamaranean. It annoyed everyone to death. Ever since Cyborg learned her language, they would occasionally bring up a topic and no other titan knew what they were saying!

"Flargaxini metworm nopturn oruga neth." Starfire said

"Chinitan! Globstar recktang kattl lee marphlnon." Cyborg replied

"Blognaftar!" Starfire laughed.

"Sorry to interrupt but could you please speak English while you're around us?" Robin asked.

"Why? English doesn't annoy you." Cyborg snickered

"Yes but still. We feel kind of uncomfortable when you two are in a discussion that we can't understand."

"Very well Robin. If you must know, we were discussing Cyborg's car." Starfire said.

"Okay thanks." he replied, giving Starfire a warm smile. She blushed and floated off to make herself breakfast. Cyborg and Raven were watching him watch her as she flew off to the kitchen.

Cyborg cocked his eyebrow and waved his hand in front of Robin's face

"Hellooo, Earth to Robin! You there?" he mocked. Robin snapped out of his daze.

"Huh?"

"Dude, you were staring at Starfire again." Cyborg said, smiling wide. Robin blushed a bright crimson.

"I was not staring at her!"

"Uh, yeah you were."

"I was not!"

"Were so!"

"Was not!"

"Yes"

"No"

"No"

"Yes!"

"Ha! I got you to say yes! Well, not as smart as you think you are huh? You just fell for a Beast boy trick!" Cyborg laughed. Robin rolled his eyes.

"Fine, so I was. Big deal! I don't like her like that!" Robin snapped

"Are you sure?" Cyborg asked incredulously

"Yes now quit bugging me about it!" Robin ordered.

"Okay chill man I'll stop talking about it."

"Thank You."

During this whole argument over virtually nothing, Raven just sipped her coffee and paid attention to the windows. She had never had coffee before and the taste of was a little bitter but not all that unpleasant. It was definitely thicker than tea but yet the warm liquid ran down her throat smoothly. She could feel the caffeine seeping into her muscles and making her tense up a bit. She finished her cup and walked it over to the sink. When she sat back down, Robin got up and placed the newspaper on the table and set his coffee mug next to Raven's.

"Okay so I was thinking of checking on the criminals now. You coming?" he asked Raven. She nodded and stood up.

"I wish you a pleasant morning friends!" Starfire called.

"Thanks. We'll see you guys later." Robin called back.

As He and Raven walked down the hallway to the garage, they past a still sleepy Beast boy. He muttered them good morning then walked down to the common room. Robin smiled as he saw Beast boy take a second glance at Raven then blush mildly after he saw Robin had caught him.

"What are you smiling about?" Raven asked.

"Nothing." Robin replied coolly.

When the two reached the garage, Robin got on his R-Cycle while Raven flew beside him. The morning was just as boring as she was warned. They stopped at the prison to check on all the villains. They walked past each villains cell and each one sneered at them or made a crude comment. Some however shrieked and huddled into a corner as soon as they saw Raven cough cough… Dr. Light… cough. But otherwise none of their behavior changed and they were all still trying to escape…as usual.

Once everything was clear there, the chief gave Robin some files for him to fill out and organize on the crime rates of the city's normal bad guys, the super villains, and the crime rate for the neighboring county's, in case a new villain would happen to show up. Robin and Raven rolled their eyes and flew/drove back home, unwilling to do the paperwork ahead.

Back at the tower, Starfire was giving Silkie a bath while Cyborg and Beast boy battled it out on the Game station. After a couple dozen times of losing to Cyborg and one victory. The two could barely look at the screen their eyes hurt so much. When the T.V. was off, Beast boy blinked a couple times, seeing large blue dots appearing everywhere.

"You know Raven might be right about videogames, they're dangerous!" he said as he tried to get up and walk blindly to the fridge without tripping, he wasn't having much luck.

"Psh, you're only agreeing with her because you like her" Cyborg said casually.

"SHHHH! Don't say it so loud!" he whispered harshly.

"Why not? No one else is here." Cyborg said. Beast boy rolled his eyes and took a seat on the couch. He threw Cyborg his root beer he had asked for and the two clinked their beverages together and drank their fill.

"So, you got any plans for Friday?" Cyborg asked.

"Ha, ha, very funny. I know that's my day with Raven." he said in a '_duh_' voice.

"Yeah but what are you going to do? You seriously aren't just going to sit around and tell her meaningless jokes are you?" he asked.

Beast boy thought of this for a moment. "I don't know. I don't want to make her do something she doesn't want to do like play videogames but I don't know of anything that we can do together. She and I are so…different." Beast boy said sadly. He had already thought of everything that they could do together but had come up with nothing.

"Well, maybe you're looking at it the wrong way." he said. Beast boy cocked his eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't think about you and Raven doing something that you both would like, if you do that then you'll focus on how different you two are."

"Well we are."

"I guess so. But there are some similarities."

"Such as…"

"Well you both got a damn good tempers." he said. Beast boy shrugged and took another sip of his root beer.

"I guess but I don't get angry often."

"Yeah but when you do you're like the Beast in human form." Cyborg said.

"Oh" was all Beast boy could say. He had no idea how angry he could actually get until Cyborg had just said it. "Well, sorry dude but can you help me with the whole Raven thing?" he asked

"Oh right. Well, again don't think of it as an outing. Think of it as a…date." Cyborg said. Beast boy looked at him like he was crazy.

"Are you crazy!" he nearly shouted "I can't do that! If I asked her out…"

"Whoa man chill…I said think of it as a date…don't actually ask her out yet." he replied, sipping his root beer. Beast boy eyed him curiously.

"Yet?" he asked. Cyborg only looked at him like he was stupid. "What I'm just kidding!" he chuckled. His smile left him as quickly as it had come.

"I don't know Cyborg…this is…I just…I know I like her but…I have my doubts…" Beast boy said sadly.

"Well I'm sure you do. You don't know whether she likes you or not. Now come on man cheer up. If you were to take her on a date and it was around noon, where would you take her?" Cyborg said, trying to comfort his friend. Beast boy sighed and thought about the question.

"Let's see, a date huh? Well I'd probably take her to a movie, maybe see Lord of the Rings or something that would interest both of us, Then I'd take her to the boardwalk and amusement park and maybe win her a prize that she actually likes, we would probably ride the Ferris wheel once cause you know she hates roller coasters, then maybe since it would be around three by that time then I'd take her to this really cool place I found, sorry dude no details on where, for dinner maybe I'd make her a picnic at the beach cause I know she hates fancy restaurants and so do I, and afterwards go for a walk through the park and walk off the meal and to wrap it all up I would take her to this really cool dance club I found in the city, it's not that big and it's hardly ever crowded. I know how she hates places that are too public." Beast boy finished. He took a breath at saying all these things so fast.

Cyborg only looked at him and raised his eyebrow. He smirked a bit then took another swing of root beer and let out a loud belch.

"Well, it sounds like you have Friday planned out." he snickered. Beast boy shook his head.

"No way. That's date stuff, if I took her out to those places, she'd think that we were actually on a date!"

"Well, what if you were?" he inquired

"What are you saying?' Beast boy asked cautiously. Cyborg rolled his eyes and moaned.

"Ugh! Do I have to spell it out for you man! You. Ask. Out. Raven. By. Fri-day! Am. I. Going. Too. Fast?" he mocked. Beast boy frowned but then relaxed and sighed.

"I dunno Cy. What if she says no? I don't think she even feels the same way about me!" Beast boy groaned.

"You never know if you don't ask. Cyborg said wisely.

--

"UGH! Finally! The paperwork is done!" Robin groaned. He was glad that Raven was helping him otherwise it would have taken twice as long.

"How're you doing? Did you exercise any emotions today?" he asked her. Raven was rubbing her eyes, she had never read anything as boring as those files. Epics, yes, Dark fantasies, of course, even some romance novels, but she has never read anything as monotonous as this. She had to give Robin some credit for taking on all this responsibility. She had such trouble focusing, she had to frequently reread some sentences before taking them in. Now she knew why Beast boy didn't like to read much.

"Stress and Boredom." she replied. Robin chuckled.

"Such is the life of the team leader." he said. Raven blinked and rubbed her eyes once more. So she could focus.

"You hungry?" he asked.

"A little, maybe we should get some lunch." she replied. Robin nodded and the two made their way to the common room.

Once the doors opened, the foul smell of mayonnaise, turkey, chicken, beef, ham, salami, pastrami, and bologna filled the air. Yep, it was lunchtime and that meant that Cyborg was having his meat filled, 5 foot long sub. The two titans both clenched their noses and breathed through their mouths.

"Need some?" Beast boy asked, holding out two clothespins. He had his own clothespin on his nose, blocking the awful scent of Cyborg's meaty sub.

"No thanks." Robin said, releasing his nose as Cyborg consumed the last of his sub. Raven did the same and walked over to the table where Beast boy was.

"Well, I've lost my appetite." she said.

"Tell me about it." Beast boy said sarcastically. His voice a little nasally from the clothespin.

"Well, what do you want to do now?" Robin asked.

"I told you, you pick."

"I can't keep picking. Come on, there's got to be something that you want to do, exercise emotions that you haven't already." he said. Raven thought about this. She then smiled a devious smile.

"Well there is ONE that I would like to use." she said.

"What?" he asked.

Raven paused for a moment. "Bravery." she said. This caught Beast boy and Cyborg's attention immediately and they listened in on what she had in mind.

"So you wanna spar?" he asked. She nodded.

"All right, you're on!" he smirked. He reached his hand over the table and they shook hands. Suddenly Beast boy burst out laughing. This caught all of them by surprise, Cyborg even choked on his last bit of sandwich. They all stared at him like he was crazy.

"What!?" Raven practically yelled, thinking he was laughing at her. He didn't answer, his laughter becoming more hyena-like by the second.

"What's up? Meat fumes getting to you?" Cyborg joked. Beast boy calmed down a bit but he was still laughing hard.

"No…it's just…HA HA HA…I can't…believe…Rob thinks…he can beat Raven!" he cackled. Raven then gave Robin a smug smile and gave Beast boy a grateful one.

"What?" Robin almost shouted.

"Yeah man are you crazy? Rob's the one who has all the combat practice and kung fu skills." Cyborg defended. Raven gave him a glare that screamed 'Traitor!'

"Heh…yeah but that's nothing compared to Raven. You remember what Brave did to the statue the last time we saw her. Trust me, Robin's got no chance." Beast boy defended.

Raven gave him a large smile. "Thanks." she said a little sheepishly.

"No problem. Besides, you and I both know you can take him down, despite what he and his boyfriend over there say." he joked.

Then she did something that no one expected. Something that they never knew Raven would ever do in her life. Something that completely redefined Raven's personality and everything they've come to know her to be. She laughed…at Beast boy's joke!

The three titans were shocked but none as much as Beast boy. Once he heard her laugh, his heart skipped a beat. He had only heard her laugh at his jokes twice. Once when they first met, and when he and Cyborg met Raven's happy emotion. This time was different. It wasn't a shy giggle or a loud, annoying laugh that was clouded with unbridled joy and too out of character for her. It was…cute. It was a cross between the two and he found it beautiful. It wasn't too out of character yet, it was like the dark, mysterious girl he had come to know was…dare he say…coming out of her shell! He couldn't help the ear to ear grin the spread across his face.

"Did you just…laugh?" he asked. Raven nodded, still smiling.

"At one of HIS jokes!" Cyborg said, she nodded again.

"Does that mean you think I'm funny?" he asked hopefully. Her smile was then replaced by a playful grin.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves shall we. I laughed, I didn't say anything." she said. Beast boy felt his ears droop a little. Raven noticed this

"Even if I did say it, would you be sure you wouldn't get egotistic on me?" she asked. He thought for a moment then chuckled.

"Heh I guess that does sound like me. All right I'll see if I can get you to laugh again this week, then we'll see who's funny." he said, his ears raising again. Raven smiled again.

"Okay! Raven! We still have something to settle remember?" Robin said challengingly.

"Fine! Let's do this then!" she said just as threateningly as Robin.

--

"Fifty bucks says Robin kicks you're Azarathian ass!" Cyborg shouted once they were all in the training room.

"Yeah well up yours!" Raven shouted giving him a gesture to show what she meant.

"Better get ready to pay up tin man. Cause my money's that Raven beats Boy Wonder to a pulp!" Beast boy smirked.

"Oh I'll take that bet" Cyborg smirked, shaking Beast boy's hand

Raven and Robin both rolled their eyes. They got into the sparring circle and each took off their cloak and cape.

"All right y'all here are the rules!" Cyborg announced. "First one to stay down for more than 5 seconds loses. Three rounds. No powers! No Gadgets! No Groin!" he said this more to Raven than Robin "No Mercy! Deal?" Raven and Robin both nodded. They shook hands and returned to their designated corners.

"Ready? Let's get it on!" He shouted. He hit a bell to mark the first round. Then it was on. Raven and Robin both circled each other to see who would make the first move, finally Raven went in to fake a punch to his face but then swipe his legs out. He saw this coming but dodged it and went in for a kick of his own. She jumped out of the way and away from him. He jumped at her and grabbed her by the stomach. He pinned her down and waited for the 5 seconds.

"One…Two…Three…" Cyborg shouted.

Raven put her feet under Robin's stomach and pushed him over her. She quickly stood up and jumped to pin him down. He stayed down for three seconds before punching her in the jaw and knocking her to the ground. He stood up in front of her and she saw her chance. She swiped her legs underneath him, knocking him off balance. He fell to the ground with a thud.

She stood up and rubbed her jaw. She could hear the boys shouting from the side lines.

"Yeah Raven!" Beast boy shouted

"Come on Rob you can beat her! She's just a girl." Cyborg only said this last comment as an instinctual boy thing, though once he said it Raven went from confident and determined to hurt and enraged. Beast boy shot Cyborg a death glare and he could have sworn he heard him growl. Robin had apparently not heard this comment and stood right up. He noticed that Raven was now angry, he figured that she was pissed from the punch. He smiled, he knew that anger was almost always your down fall.

Raven lunged for him but he ducked down and kicked her in the stomach. She fell to her knees, gasping for breath and clutching her stomach. Robin put his foot on her back and pushed her down once more. He held her there and waited for Cyborg to count.

"One…Two…"

This was it, she was just going to give up. Who cares what Cyborg said, it was just a slip of the tongue, he didn't mean it. It doesn't even matter who won this match, it was over already.

"…Three…Four…"

"RAVEN GET UP!" Beast boy shouted. This alone for some reason caused her to twist around and grab Robin's foot and pull him to the ground. Beast boy smiled a wide grin and watched as the fight continued. Robin was caught off guard by this attack but it did not stop there. She had jumped out of the way and while Robin was struggling to get up, she rammed herself into his stomach, pushing him backwards. He tried to do a flip and kick her in the process but she caught his foot and threw him to the other side of the ring. She smiled wickedly.

As soon as she had done that Starfire had walked in the room. At first she was afraid that they were actually trying to hurt each other, but Beast boy and Cyborg explained the situation. Soon she was yelling and cheering for Robin and Raven at the same time.

The two began to circle each other again, trying to catch their breath. They were both sweating profusely with scratches and bruises on them. Robin had large bruises on his head in several places where Raven had kicked, punched and thrown him. Raven's jaw had begun to bruise from when Robin had kicked her and she had a small scratch on her leg from when Robin's belt accidentally nipped her. Robin saw Starfire out of the corner of his eye and realized that she was cheering each of them on.

He took off his shirt and threw it aside. Raven smirked. "Showing off for Starfire are we?" she whispered so only Robin could hear her. Strangely he became enraged by this and he lunged for her, she smiled. She ducked out of the way aimed a punch into his gut like he had done before. She thrust her arm as hard as she could. She hit him in the stomach and he coughed and gagged. She didn't give him a chance to stand, she kicked him in the jaw and she pinned him to the ground.

"One…Two…Three…Four…" Cyborg said, he hesitated on the last number. Raven gave him a glare as well as Beast boy.

"FIVE!" Beast boy shouted, a little angry that Cyborg had tried to cheat for Robin. Raven stood up, took her cloak and left. Starfire immediately came to the aid of Robin as soon as she had left. Cyborg sighed and looked down to his green friend next to him.

"All right man you win. Raven won so here's the cash." Cyborg sighed, handing Beast boy a fifty. He smacked his robotic hand away.

"I don't want it." he said coldly.

"What?" he asked completely surprised. Beast boy's answer also made Starfire and Robin stop what they were doing to pay attention to the angry changeling and the confused metal man.

"Why did you say that? Why did you do that?" he practically shouted at him

"Do what?"

"You said that she shouldn't win because she's a girl." he shouted. At this, Starfire clenched her teeth and her eyes began to flicker a green glow.

"Yeah well I'm sure she knows that I was just kidding."

"And what about hesitating to call out that she won?"

"It was a joke! I didn't mean to hurt her feelings."

"Yeah. Apologize to her tomorrow, I'll go see if she's okay." Beast boy said coldly.

The green changeling bolted out the door and after Raven. Which left Cyborg alone with Starfire's angry glare and Robin's disapproving look. Beast boy jogged down the hallway and stopped at Raven's door. He knocked on it softly.

"Raven? Are you in there?" he asked. There was no answer. He put his ear up to the door and he could hear the lung spasms of her crying inside, he could smell the salt of her tears.

"Look Raven it's okay. Cyborg didn't mean what he said. I admit that was a crappy thing to say but it'll be okay. You proved him wrong! You beat Robin, and I bet Star's going to give him one hell of a time." he chuckled. She still did not answer him. He sighed and leaned his head against her door.

"Raven please say something. I can't stand knowing that you're upset."

"Yeah well it's nothing fifty bucks can't fix right!" she shouted coldly through the door. This startled Beast boy though he was a little hurt at what she had just said.

"Raven do you think I care? I called off the bet! I want to make sure you're okay." he said calmly.

"I'm just DANDY!" she shouted.

"Raven please let me in. Let me help you." he said desperately

"I don't need your help!" she shouted

"Raven!" He said a little louder.

"NO! I don't need you to apologize for him Beast boy! And I certainly DON'T need your PITY!" She scolded

"Raven I'm not pitying you! I just want to help you feel better!" he practically shouted.

"Why? You wouldn't understand anyways!" she shouted.

Again Beast boy felt his heart sink at her words. How does she know that he doesn't understand? She knows nothing about him! But…that's because he never shared. He looked down at the ground for a while. He could hear her sobbing even harder from the other side. He leaned up against the wall and slid down it. He rested his forehead on his knees and just sat there.

Soon the crying stopped and he didn't hear her sobbing anymore. He thought that she had gone to bed and decided to leave her alone. He stood up and was about to go to the common room when her door opened. She had her hood up and was staring at the ground. He could see the dried on tears on her reddened cheeks.

"I'm sorry." she mumbled. Beast boy looked at her confused.

"Why? You didn't do anything. It's Cyborg who should apologize to you." he said.

"No…I'm…sorry I yelled at you…I shouldn't have taken my anger out on you. Not after all you've done for me, with getting me this necklace that'll let me feel, and cheering me on at the match…I'm sorry." she said softly. She was on the verge of tears again. Beast boy sensed this and quickly went over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. She felt a strange spark throughout her body when he touched her.

"No, you don't have to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. Now don't listen to Cyborg okay? You're one of the strongest, prettiest, bravest, smartest people I know." he said with a smile.

She looked him right in the eyes with a bewildered expression. Her face was red and raw from crying and her eyes appeared to be glassy and fragile.

"you…you think I'm…pretty?" she asked, utterly surprised. Beast boy's smile disappeared and his face flushed a deep red. He broke out in a cold sweat and his heart began to race. He retracted his arm and rubbed the back of his neck.

"uh…uh…" was all he managed to say. "I…uh…I…I…uh…ye…yeah I do." he said finally. He was having trouble finding the words and he knew that if he took it back, she would get hurt and he didn't want that. The only thing to do now was to wait and hope that she wouldn't be angry at him. Though what she did next shocked him the most.

She leaped into his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck. She hugged him tightly and smiled. She had never been called pretty before. Beautiful yes, but that was from an evil dragon in a book, his words didn't matter anymore. Beast boy however, she trusted him with her life, there could be no way he was lying.

He was completely taken aback by this but he happily wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back. They stood like that for a minute or two before Raven pulled away, a smile painted on her lips and her eyes, shining like they were in the moonlight.

"Thank you Beast boy. You have no idea how much that means to me." she said. "I'm going to go to bed, I'll see you tomorrow." she said before giving him another quick hug and retreating to her room.

Beast boy was left flabbergasted and flushed. He shook his head and smiled dreamily to himself. He practically floated back to his room. He couldn't wait for Friday.


	4. Wednesday

"Raven I'm Sorry!" Cyborg shouted. He had caught her the following morning in the hall and tried to apologize. Of course Raven had already forgiven him thanks to Beast boy but she wasn't about to make it that easy for him. She was after all…half demon.

Raven walked through the doors of the common room and proceeded to the refrigerator to pull out some Glork Supreme. She had agreed with herself that she would actually eat one of Starfire's Tamaranean specialties today. She wasn't all that enthusiastic about it but she had to be fair. She had Robin's coffee yesterday and tomorrow she was going to eat Cyborg's meat. For today she was ready for an all day shopping spree with Starfire. Star had been waiting for this day for far too long…an all out 'Day of the Girls' as Starfire liked to call it.

Cyborg followed her into the kitchen like a slave, all the while apologizing to her left and right.

"…c'mon Raven you know I didn't mean it. It was a slip of the tongue! I didn't mean to hurt your feelings! I'm sorry! I'm really really really really sorry! Please forgive me." he pleaded.

Raven merely rolled her eyes and smiled inwardly. Robin was already sitting on the couch, sipping his coffee and reading the newspaper…as usual. He looked over the couch and made eye contact with Cyborg. He have him a disapproving looked and Cyborg moaned and made his way over to the couch. He was done apologizing for the day.

The doors swished open and in came a beaming Starfire. She knew that today was her 'girl time' with Raven and she was clearly excited. She looked over and found Raven trying to figure out how to cook the Glork.

"Raven! You wish to cook the Glork? You have never willingly tried my Tamaranean cooking before." she said confused.

"I know but I'm trying to get a feel of how you guys act and how it affects your emotions. What you eat can have a dramatic affect on how you feel." she said plainly.

"So…you wish to eat the Glork because you wish to feel how I feel?" she asked. Raven nodded.

"Wondrous! You may steal the chairs while I prepare the Glork Supreme! She said excitedly. The boys instantly looked over the couch to make sure they heard right.

"I think she means 'Take a seat'." Raven said, sitting down on the couch.

"How do you do that?" Robin asked.

"Do what?" she replied

"How can you understand what she says all the time? I mean she speaks English but you're like her translator from Starfire English to normal English." Cyborg said.

"Well it is the hardest language to learn, you should give her credit for even being able to learn it in the first place." Raven said plainly.

"Yeah, I'm sure locking lips with Robin is such a hard thing to do." Cyborg chuckled. Robin glared at him but he did not protest.

"Really? Then why don't you do it?" Raven smirked. Robin glared at her next but then he smirked as well, this was more of a thing against Cyborg and not him.

"Hey! That's not cool! If it's so easy then YOU kiss him!" he challenged. Raven rolled her eyes.

"No offense Robin but you're not my type." she said

"None taken." he replied. He smirked at Cyborg.

"Oh yeah then what IS your type? You…you wouldn't kiss me…would you?" he asked hesitantly. He really hoped the answer was no. Raven shuddered.

"Hell no. Besides, I'm still mad at you." she joked. Cyborg let out a relieved smile.

"Good. You're like my little sister…and I said I was sorry!" he said. Both Robin and Raven chuckled a bit.

"So…what about Beast boy?" Robin smirked, though he had a pretty good idea of what the answer was.

"I don't know. Maybe." she said. She said it a little shyly and you could almost see her blushing under her hood.

Both Robin's and Cyborg's mouths fell open. They gaped for a few seconds before Robin had the courage to ask her again.

"Um…eh…what?" he said, making sure he heard right.

"I said maybe. I don't like him like that but I'm not saying the possibility is not there. We've never been real close friends so I wouldn't call him my brother or anything." she shrugged.

They could not believe what they were hearing. Man, why is Beast boy not here to hear this! Speak of the devil, Beast boy just walked into the room, looking strangely refreshed and happy. This was an odd sight, considering Beast boy was most often tired and sluggish in the morning. He walked down to the fridge to get his tofu.

Raven looked at Cyborg and Robin as if to mentally tell them 'Not a word'. They obliged, despite Cyborg's urge to blackmail Raven. He decided against it once he saw Raven's glare. He was already in enough trouble with her.

"Raven! The Glork Supreme is complete! Won't you join me in the consumption of this delicious meal?" Starfire called from the kitchen. Raven smiled and walked into the kitchen.

"Sure…where's the plates?"

"Here they are!" Starfire exclaimed, handing Raven a plate with a helping of a purple blob. "I have added Zorka Berries to make them extra delicious!" she said excitedly

Raven gazed at the alien food unsure, she gathered up all her courage and ate a spoonful of the Glork. Starfire watched her intently, while Beast boy, Robin and Cyborg all looked at her in fear.

Raven was ready for any foul taste that may come from the dish…but there was none. Instead there as a slight taste of a blueberry muffin mixed with ice cream and sugar. The feeling she got was one that was hyperactive. She soon realized that Glork Supreme was the equivalent of twelve earth pastries and candy bars. In other words, right now…she as getting a Tamaranean Sugar Rush! Her eyes widened and she looked at the plate hungrily. She seemingly devoured the rest of the alien mush in about five seconds. No wonder Starfire was so chipper all the time. She was constantly on Alien Sugar High!

Starfire clapped happily while Robin, Cyborg and Beast boy stared at her with shocked faces. Raven licked her lips and smiled widely, she was almost looking jittery.

"Wow, I never knew you were that good a cook Star." Raven said. Starfire squealed.

"Thank you friend Raven! I have never been complemented on by Tamaranean dishes before! I am so glad that you enjoyed it!" she said. Starfire finished her dish and before they knew it, they were out the door and going to the 'mall of shopping'.

The boys stared at each other for a moment and then back at the two plates that once held The Glork Supreme.

"Am I missing something?" Beast boy asked. Robin shrugged.

"Not really." he said "Starfire was making Raven breakfast and apparently…she liked it."

The boys were silent for a few moments. "Well I don't care if Tamaranean gook is the most delicious thing on the planet, I'm still not going to eat it. I don't even know if it's vegetarian!" Beast boy exclaimed.

Cyborg and Robin rolled their eyes while Beast boy proceeded to the kitchen.

"You know…….I can't wait till Friday" he said

"I'm sure you can't." Cyborg said, apparently trying to ignore him.

"You know, I might even ask her out on a date." he said with a cocky grin. This allowed Robin and Cyborg to look over the back of the couch.

"Seriously?" they both said together. Beast boy nodded.

"Yep I got the whole day planned out perfectly. I'll take her out to do some cool things, then I'll ask her out at the end of the night, and if she says yes. YES!!" he exclaimed.

"No way" Cyborg said disbelieving "The day you get a date with Raven is the day Robin kisses Starfire." he said

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Robin asked defensively.

"Oh nothing." Cyborg replied with a knowing smile. Beast boy rolled his eyes while smiling at his two friends on the sofa and got back to cooking up some tofu.

--

"Oh and this one! And this one! Oh Raven please do you not like this one!?" Starfire was going through the clothes at the mall, actually she was tearing up the place and extracting every pink item on the rack and throwing it at Raven. She was so frantic in finding everything, she resembled a panic stricken citizen who's just been told the volcano near them exploded.

Raven looked at her alien friend in amusement but she as getting a little weak in the knees with all the clothes she was carrying. Finally, it happened. Raven wasn't sure whether it was dumb luck or the apocalypse was happening. Starfire stopped.

She flew up to Raven and relieved her of all the clothes poor Raven had to carry. She swore her hands were burning from all the pink.

"Raven do you not wish to do 'the shopping'. It is a most joyous tradition!" she said happily. Raven rolled her eyes.

"I'm not much of a shopper. And anyway these clothes aren't really my style." she said.

"Oh" Starfire said. "Well then we must journey to a store that has mine and your styles!" Starfire said.

"No you don't have to do that Starfire. You should try on the clothes you have there. I'll just go to the store across from us."

"Okay. What store of shopping is across from the one we are currently in?"

Raven honestly didn't know. She just said that to get out of _'Claire's'. _She looked out the store window to see… "Hot Topic." Raven muttered.

"Oh." Starfire said "Very well friend. I shall join you shortly." Starfire said happily, taking the many clothes into the dressing room. Raven smiled and headed towards the store. When she walked in she felt a little more comfortable. She nodded her head to the beat of _'Animal I Have Become' _by Three Days Grace. This was Beast boy's favorite song she thought. Wait….why was she thinking about Beast boy? She flushed ever so slightly and turned to browse the clothes.

By the time Starfire had finished buying and trying on her clothes, Raven had emerged from Hot Topic with one small bag with a black t-shirt, pants and a _Panic! At the Disco _CD. She met Starfire back inside Claire's where Starfire gave her a disapproving look.

"Raven this is what you would say…disgraceful to the mall of shopping." Starfire scolded nicely. Raven rolled her eyes.

"I told you Starfire. I'm not much of a shopper." she said

Starfire smiled widely "Then I shall help you." the alien said "Do not fear friend Raven, we shall find some suitable clothing for your…tastes?" she questioned. Raven nodded and Starfire took her arm and dragged her back to Hot Topic.

Heads turned toward Starfire as they entered. They knew her style and she didn't exactly fit in with the crowd. However, they didn't question her and returned to whatever they were doing previously. Raven rolled their eyes at their behavior as Starfire dragged her to a rack of clothes and began browsing.

"Here, I shall chose many fits of the out that I am certain you will like." she said happily.

"You mean outfits?" Raven questioned. Starfire blushed mildly.

"Yes…that is the word….please do the looking friend Raven. You must embrace the mall of shopping and enjoy yourself." Starfire smiled.

Raven rolled her eyes and smiled as well. She began to browse through the clothes. She was able to find one shirt that she liked while Starfire appeared with at least 50 in her hands. Raven sighed and knew that the alien would make her try on all of them. They made their way to the dressing room where Raven relieved Starfire of the clothes and reluctantly entered the dressing room.

"Which article have you chosen to try first?" Starfire asked.

"The black t-shirt with a red gothic 'R' on it." Raven replied.

"Does it do the fitting of the glove?" Starfire asked. Raven put on the shirt and called back.

"Yeah it fits. I'll put it aside." she said.

"Yes! Now which one are you doing the…_trying on_?" Starfire called.

It was like that for about two hours. Raven would try on a shirt or pair of pants and give Starfire a legitimate reason as to why she didn't want it or if she did. She had tried on about twenty outfits so far and about fifteen of them didn't fit or she hated. When she was finally finished she looked at her pile of about ten clothes that she either liked or fit and compared it to the other pile of about forty. She sighed and straightened up the larger pile so she could put it back on the shelf. Well…she _was, _until a certain alien gave her ONE more shirt to try on.

"Raven you must try this on! I have found it and I believe you would look marvelous in it!" Starfire said excitedly.

Raven cringed a bit at the article of clothing. It was a little more revealing then she preferred. It looked like a black tank top with one wide strap and one small strap. It cut down the chest a little too far for Raven's tastes and it definitely wouldn't cover her belly button.

"Uh…Starfire? I don't think that…." she started.

"Please Friend Raven! I promise you that this is the last outfit I will show you. Pleeeease!" Starfire begged. Raven could practically see her puppy dog eyes through the door of the dressing room.

"Fine." she said and grabbed the shirt. She threw it on the larger pile and prepared and excuse…

"Oh, and please, will you not show me what you look like?" Starfire asked, as if seeing through Raven's plan. She sighed.

"Fine." she said. She picked up the shirt again and put it on. She didn't even look in the mirror, she just opened the door to show Starfire.

"Happy?" she said somewhat bitterly.

Starfire gasped "Oh RAVEN you MUST buy this! It looks wondrous on you!" she exclaimed.

Raven rolled her eyes "I highly doubt that Star…" she began

"Oh NO Raven you must see!" Starfire replied. She dragged Raven back into the dressing room and stood her in front of the mirror. Raven quirked an eyebrow at what she saw.

The shirt hugged her chest and flared out a bit as it came down. The neckline didn't cut as low as she thought it did. There was hardly any cleavage and the little that was there made the outfit…tasteful. Raven was a little surprised that she would like something that was so…revealing. Though that's what she was there for, to try new things. She turned to a smiling Starfire, unsure.

"You really think I should get this?" she said. Starfire nodded.

"Yes. I am most certain that you will enjoy this outfit." Starfire said happily. Raven smiled.

"Okay…I'll get it. Though I'm not sure what for…but…"

"Perhaps you will wear it on a date." Starfire suggested. Raven looked at her strangely.

"A…date? Starfire I'm not the dating type." Raven said plainly.

"But of course you are!" Starfire said "Everyone is! And once you have found the one person that makes you happy, you shall begin the dating and perhaps you shall wear this." Starfire said.

Raven sighed "No one is going to ask me out." Raven said, slightly sad.

"Do not be so sure Raven. I have observed the behavior of many earthlings and I believe there is one in particular that has interest in you." Starfire said. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Oh yeah…who?" Raven said, not all that interested.

"Please, you must not be angry with me after I say his name. This is just my opinion." Starfire warned.

"I promise." Raven said. Starfire bit her lip.

"I believe that friend Beast boy has taken a particular interest in you." Starfire said. Raven's eyes widened.

"Beast boy!" she shouted, but not in an angry way. She turned away from Starfire, for she could not help the creeping blush, making it's way onto her cheeks.

"Raven…you are…alright?" Starfire asked. Raven cleared her throat.

"I'm fine Starfire. I was just a little shocked that's all…I don't think Beast boy likes me." she said quickly, her tone of voice slightly saddened again.

"Oh but as I have said. Do not be so sure. I am confident that if not Beast boy, then some one will do the asking of you out." Starfire replied with a smile. Raven smiled as well.

"Thanks Starfire. Now why don't you get out. I need to change back and then we can buy these clothes." Raven said. Starfire smiled and nodded.

Once Starfire was out of the dressing room, Raven took one last look in the mirror and smiled. Starfire was always just what she needed when the time called for it. She changed back into her black t-shirt and bought the clothes that she had chosen.

--

"Oh! Raven look!" Starfire exclaimed. She was pointing to a tattoo parlor at the end of the mall. "Raven we must get a tattoo!" Starfire exclaimed.

Raven looked at her unsure. After she had bought her clothes, the two had roamed through out the mall and so far Raven was having a good time. Now Starfire was asking her to get a tattoo? Weren't those painful? This was going a little too far.

"I don't think so….a tattoo? You do know they're permanent right?' Raven asked, making sure that this is what the alien wanted. Starfire nodded excitedly.

"Yes, yes I know! I understand that they can be quite painful, but the people of my planet are most resilient. Please Raven I do not wish to get one alone." Starfire begged. Raven looked into those puppy dog eyes that would make Beast boy's cat face look like a helping of Starfire's glorka worm pie.

Raven sighed and thought about it "I don't know….it's so….permanent." she said. Starfire looked at her with begging eyes.

"Please Raven? You said that you wished to do the things…different. Perhaps this shall be one of them. Please." Starfire begged. Raven thought about it for a few minutes. She looked into those sad pathetic green eyes and sighed.

"All right Starfire. But I'm not going to get one where everyone will see it." Raven warned. Starfire grinned giddily.

"YES YES! Of course Raven! Come! Let us partake in the getting of a tattoo!" Starfire exclaimed and hauled Raven into the parlor.

--

"That was most….interesting. I did not know that earthly pains tickled so much." Starfire said.

"They don't." Raven moaned.

The two girls had just came out of the tattoo parlor and Raven was in mild pain during the whole experience while Starfire was laughing the whole time. The girls didn't know how Robin would react to this little…stunt. They assumed he would scold them and tell them that it was a very irresponsible thing to do. Starfire wasn't worried until Raven brought it up so they agreed to get tattoos that they could hide.

Starfire wasn't too excited about hiding her new…fashion statement…and she decided to get a little red heart on her shoulder, that she could easily cover with her metal arm band. Raven didn't want to take any chances. She knew there was one place where she could feel comfortable about someone tattooing her and it will still be covered up at all times…her lower back.

She found an interesting design that matched her new necklace nicely. Actually when she thought about the necklace she wondered whether or not Beast boy would like the tattoo. She then remembered that he would never see it and wondered why she had thought about him so much.

"Raven, what do you wish to do now?" Starfire asked. Raven gave her a small glare that cleared up what she meant. She was tired of people asking her what she wanted to do. It wasn't HER day. "Oh, I am sorry friend. Perhaps we shall return home and partake in the 'girl talk'." Starfire said quickly. Raven smiled.

"That sounds good to me." Raven said. Starfire beamed at her. Raven thought she could have seen what was coming but alas…she didn't. Starfire hugged her tightly, causing both to drop their bags of _'shopping materials' _and for Raven to hold her breath.

"Friend I am overjoyed to have spent the day with you. It is most glorious to see that you have enjoyed yourself as well." Starfire said. She slowly released her now blue, empathic friend and beamed. Raven could not stop the smile that was grazing her face.

"Thank you Starfire. This _was _one of the best days of my life." Raven said truthfully "But no more hugs today." she added, as Starfire was about to embrace her again. The alien princess smile nervously and blushed embarrassedly.

"Come friend let us return home. Is it not the time of dinners?" Starfire asked. Raven laughed inwardly. Starfire was always so sweet and innocent. The best thing about her, is the fact that she's able to express herself freely without fear of judgment. Something that Raven wasn't so confident about, even now that she was free to feel. She rolled her eyes and smiled at her friend.

"Dinnertime? Yes I think it is. Let's go." Raven said, levitating off the ground as Starfire flew up beside her, a large smiled on her face. Did she EVER stop smiling?

--

"C'mon man it's my turn!"

"No it isn't!"

What's wrong with you? Yes it is!"

"No! I don't think so!"

"It's my…."

"Not your…"

"TURN!" they shouted in unision.

"Uh guys?" Raven asked from the doorway. She and Starfire were a little surprised at the scene before them. Cyborg was arguing over videogames, that was common. He was always fighting with Beast boy….but one problem…where is Beast boy?

Cyborg and Robin were fighting over the controller as Beast boy and Cyborg usually do. It was rare occasion when Robin lowered his maturity level to theirs. He would do it only when something was wrong and he wanted his team to lighten up or he was really going nuts.

"Oh, hi. How was the shopping trip?" Robin asked at last. Starfire's eyes widened and she grinned from ear to ear.

"It was most joyous! I have gotten even more clothes from the mall of shopping. I have also received what is called…a tattoo." she said this last part rather sheepishly. And this got the boys attention immediately.

"A what now?" Cyborg asked. Starfire blushed and rolled up the sleeve of her pink t-shirt. There lay the small red heart with still a bit of red around it from the irritated skin.

"Wow….uh…that's looks…it's um….nice." Robin said, he was stuttering a little bit and breaking out in a cold sweat.

"Nice? Are you kiddin? That's kickass Starfire! Flintip Clorbornagel." Cyborg complimented. Starfire giggled and turned to Robin. Where she started up a conversation on what she bought.

"Yo Raven! Did you get one?" Cyborg asked, knowing the answer was no. Raven hesitated before nodding her head. Cyborg raised his human eyebrow.

"It's not like I had a choice. Starfire dragged me into it…though I'm kinda glad she did." Raven smiled.

"okay, so…where'd you get it? Arm, leg, back…" Cyborg listed

"Lower back. I would rather not show it now." she said sheepishly. Cyborg raised his hands up in defense.

"S'alright with me." he said.

"So, where's Beast boy?" Raven asked. Cyborg quirked an eyebrow.

"In his room. Why? You wanna stop by there and give him a little smooch?" Cyborg teased, referring to their conversation that morning. Raven glared at him and he shied away instantly. Soon the very changeling they were talking about walked into the room with a smile on his face.

"Oh, hey girls. What'd ya buy?" he sing-songed. Robin and Raven made frantic slashing gestures across their throats as Starfire flew up to him with handfuls and handfuls of shopping bags.

"Beast boy! I have gotten the green halter tee, a belt that is made of what you call…sequins, the various pairs of…"

"Starfire! Why don't you show Beast boy after dinner? I'll order some pizza." Robin said, Beast boy sighed in relief and gave him a grateful look. With that, Robin and Starfire both exited the common room. Starfire went to her room to put away her clothes while Robin went to go get dinner. Beast boy wiped a bead of sweat off his face.

"phew."

"Man you should know better than to ask Star about shopping." Cyborg warned

"Yeah I know. I kinda was talking to Raven though." he said. Beast boy could feel the heat on his face. He blushed so mildly that only Cyborg's cybernetic eye was capable of picking it up.

"You want to know what I got?" Raven asked "copies of what I'm wearing now" she stated simply

"See, you give a simple and easy answer." Beast boy chuckled.

"It's the only kind you can understand." Raven smirked. Cyborg grinned.

"Ha Ha very funny." Beast boy smiled.

"Yeah well at least you didn't ask about Star's tattoo." Cyborg chuckled.

Beast boy quirked his eyebrow "Star's got a tattoo too?" he asked. Cyborg nodded while Raven looked at him curiously.

"Too? You mean, you have one?" she asked. Cyborg spun around on the couch to face a blanched Beast boy. He gulped.

"n..no…I was just asking about Star. What…d..does she have?" he stuttered nervously. Raven raised her eyebrow as well as Cyborg. Beast boy broke out in a nervous sweat.

"She's got a little heart on her arm." Cyborg said, breaking the silence Beast boy nodded.

"Cool." he squeaked. He rubbed the back of his neck and turned to Raven "So….did…you get one?" he asked curiously. Raven turned to him suddenly.

"What?" she asked.

"Did you get a tattoo?" he asked again. Raven's face was placid but inside her heart was beating a twice it's normal rate.

"…er…no…no I didn't " she said softly. Cyborg looked like he was about to say something but shut his mouth tight when he saw Raven glare at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I better go put these away." Raven said, gesturing to her bags.

"kay, see ya later Rae." Beast boy said, smiling.

"It's Rae…ven." she scolded and caused Beast boy to chuckle.

"I'll keep that in mind Rae…_VEN_." he said as she walked out the door. Beast boy smiled and hopped over the couch to take a seat next to Cyborg.

"So…does she really have a tattoo?" Beast boy asked. Cyborg raised his eye at him. He smiled and chuckled at his best friend, his animal senses could pick up a lie a mile away…well…only when he paid attention to it.

"Actually yeah she does….but don't tell her I told you." Cyborg added this last part hastily.

"Don't worry about it. So, what'd she get?" Beast boy asked. Cyborg shrugged.

"I don't know. I know she got one on her lower back though." Cyborg said.

"Really?" Beast boy asked extremely interested.

"yeah." Cyborg said, staring at him suspiciously. He grinned suddenly and smirked at Beast boy. "so what'd you get?" he asked.

"I…what? I told you I don't have one." he said

"C'mon BB you can't fool me, now tell me. What did you get?" Cyborg sniggered. Beast boy glared at him but then sighed.

"Fine…I…I got a bear print on my chest." Beast boy said.

"Really? Can I see?" Cyborg asked curiously. Beast boy smiled and rolled his eyes. He stood up and took off his tight, uniform shirt. He turned around to face Cyborg and showed him a bear claw print on his left peck. Beast boy smiled proudly as Cyborg gave him an approving grin and high-fived him.

"Nice one. Why didn't you tell us?" Cyborg asked. Beast boy pulled his shirt back on and shrugged.

"I don't know. I thought Robin would yell at me and after a while I just kinda…forgot." he answered truthfully.

"Well, It's pretty awesome man. And Robin's alright with Star's tattoo so you should be alright."

"Yeah but he _likes _Star." Beast boy said.

"True, true." Cyborg said. He looked over to his green friend and raised an eyebrow. His face was a little…brown. Was he blushing? Why?

Beast boy had a shy smile on his face and he was looking out the window. Many thoughts and questions, running through his head. _What tattoo did Raven get? Why did she get it and why on her lower back? Would she like mine? _Beast boy thought. His mind was racing with thoughts all concerning Raven. What was she doing right now?

--

"Raven….would you like the Truth….or the Dare?" Starfire asked a passive Raven.

Raven sat in Starfire's unbelievably pink room playing truth or dare. After some persuasion, Starfire was able to get Raven to try the game. Raven after all, she agreed to try anything new that day to exercise her newly freed emotions….emotions. It always seemed to her that that word was forbidden. Like treasure so protected by booby traps that it was impossible to reach it. Now she had it, she had that treasure and she was able to embrace it.

Raven smiled to herself, lost in her own thoughts. She was deep into her mind that she didn't hear the auburn haired alien before her, asking her repeatedly if she was alright.

"Raven? Raven? Friend Raven are you alright?" Starfire asked. She put a hand on Raven's shoulder, snapping her out of her daze immediately.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm fine Starfire. I was just thinking." she said. Starfire tilted her head curiously.

"About what?" asked Starfire

"Well…I was just thinking about how I'm finally free…I mean truly free. I'm free from my father's grasp and I'm free to feel my emotions now. I just can't tell you how happy I am and how happy I am to be able to _say_ that I'm happy." Raven smiled

"I can feel every emotion that I've ever wanted to. And that's why I want to spend a whole day with each of you. I expect to test the limits of each of my emotions." she said

Starfire nodded her head in understanding. "So tell me friend Raven. What emotions do you expect to feel from each one of us?" she asked.

"Well mainly from Robin I expected to implement Bravery, which I did. From you Happiness which I also did, From Cyborg Intelligence and from Beast boy…." Raven trailed off. She really didn't know what to expect to feel around Beast boy, well she did but she wasn't about to say it out loud.

"Yes?" Starfire said, egging her on. It was almost as if she knew what the answer was.

"I don't know. I'll have to see when Friday comes." Raven said quickly. Starfire smiled and put her hand on her hips.

"Raven. I do believe that you know exactly what you will feel when your day with Beast boy comes." Starfire said matter-of-factly

Raven tried to hide the slight blush in her cheeks and failed miserably. "no…I really don't…" she lied. Starfire smiled at her and sighed over dramatically.

"Very well, then you do not have to tell me. So, which path do you choose? Truth or Dare?" Starfire asked again.

"Truth" Raven said immediately. She knew that around Starfire it was safe to choose dare. She would never make her do anything embarrassing, but you could never be too careful.

"Very well. Then which emotion do you think you shall fell come Friday with Beast boy?" Starfire asked. Raven sighed and looked down. Okay, truth might have been a bad idea.

"Remember Raven. You must answer truthfully. Please do not lie to me. I shall never repeat anything that you do not wish me too and I promise you friend that I will not judge you." Starfire said sympathetically. Raven looked into her strange, hypnotizing green eyes that had gotten her to get a tattoo today.

Raven sighed in defeat. "All right…I'll tell you…" Raven said. Starfire waited patiently "…It's affection…I feel affection around Beast boy." Raven admitted embarrassedly.

She waited for Starfire's cheery response. She waited for Starfire to go against what Raven had said earlier and hug her again. She waited for her to shout to the whole tower what Raven had just revealed. She waited to glare at her so sternly that she would fear her for the rest of her life…but it never came. Starfire had not said anything or even moved an inch.

Raven looked up to see Starfire's bright smile staring at her. Raven stared at her bewildered, why was she so calm? She would normally be squeezing the life out her and squealing by now. But…she's quiet. Starfire sighed and looked at Raven again, still smiling.

"Finally" she merely said. Raven continued to stare at her confused

"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded, not angry as much as she was bemused.

"Friend Raven,. you have just admitted your feelings toward Beast boy to me. I believe that is the first step to admitting it to him, though you must be sure that you have accepted your feelings yourself." Starfire said. She sounded exactly like one of those teen magazines that were always giving tips on relationships.

"And what does THAT supposed to mean?" Raven exclaimed. Starfire sighed

"Friend Raven I have observed your behavior towards Beast boy to be of the…crush…nature" Starfire said, unsure whether she used the right word. When she saw that raven understood what she meant she continued.

"I have also observed his behavior as well and I do believe that he has the feelings for you. If you have admitted to me that you…like, like…him then surely you have come to terms with yourself that you share the romantic affections with him." she said.

Raven could feel her cheeks heating up again but this time she didn't try to hide it. She was caught, she had feelings for Beast boy and she just admitted it. The strange thing was that, she had just confessed it to Starfire as well as herself at the same time.

"I…have come to terms with myself about this" Raven admitted, her eyes stinging with tears from the humiliation. She couldn't believe how embarrassed she could be just by telling Starfire this. She felt exposed, like all of her secrets were now open to the public. She was an open book for anyone to read and that book was as personal as her diary. Starfire saw the pain behind her friends eyes and her smile faded away instantly.

"Here, here. Raven," she said, scooting closer to comfort her friend "I have said that I will not do the judging of you and I shall not. Please do not cry Raven. I shall keep your secret for as long as you wish me to. I shall not tell a soul."

It was incredible to believe how well Starfire could keep a promise. Raven looked up at her with the tears slowly rolling down her cheeks. Starfire pulled her into an affectionate, sisterly hug.

"Please do not feel sorrow friend Raven. You are in love, it is supposed to be a joyous feeling." she said. Raven backed away at the word "love".

"Starfire, I LIKE him, I don't love him." she said. It was suddenly becoming easier to talk to Starfire as her tears stopped and she dried her eyes.

"Perhaps not yet." Starfire said, giving her a friendly smile. "But I believe that you shall find love in him someday." she assured.

Raven smiled and rolled her eyes. "So now you can see the future?" Raven said sarcastically. Starfire smiled at her friend who was slowly coming back to her old/new self.

"No I cannot but would that not be incredible?" Starfire exclaimed. Raven smiled.

"I suppose it would be nice. Okay my turn. Truth or Dare?" Raven challenged

"I shall choose the truth and I shall answer honestly. " Starfire promised. Raven had a mischievous gleam in her eyes. She was going to get Starfire back for making her confess her feelings about Beast boy.

"How do you feel about Robin?"


	5. Thursday

YAWN! Raven trudged the hallways of titans tower sleepily. Her 'Girl Talk' with Starfire had lasted till almost 2 in the morning. After she asked Star about Robin she went on and on about all the things she loved about him. Every one in the tower, except Starfire and Robin of course, knew that they should be together….it hasn't happened yet. Raven rolled her eyes and she remembered and extensive discussion on Robin's physical well-being. Talking about Robin like that with Starfire was a little disturbing to her. She felt like she was gossiping about a close brother…a very close brother, almost a twin.

She walked into the common room lethargically and sat down that the table. She put her head down and found the cool wood, strangely soothing. She heard the doors swish open behind her but she didn't move or even care. It was 7 in the morning and she figured it was Robin getting his coffee after going down to the doors to retrieve the newspaper.

Who ever it was, they hadn't noticed her at all yet or they were ignoring her. She heard the refrigerator door open and close and footsteps passing by her but then they stopped near the door. Raven figured it had to be Robin. The footsteps weren't loud and metallic like Cyborg, Starfire would float and Beast boy doesn't get up this early.

She did not hear the door open or close as he left, she didn't even hear his footsteps anymore, they just stopped. Then it hit her…why would Robin leave? He usually just sits down and sips his coffee…and since when is coffee in the refrigerator? She lifted her head and turned around to see the last person she expected to see this early.

Beast boy was staring at her with a bottle of water in hand and a look of curiosity and concern in his eyes.

"Hey are you feeling ok? This isn't like you in the mornings." he said, still staring at her. His concern was matched by her bewildered look.

"How do you know how I am in the mornings, you're always asleep." she said. Beast boy gave her a half-smile and laughed lightly.

"Raven I don't sleep in as late as you guys think…" he said. Raven merely quirked her eyebrow.

"Then where are you?" she asked suspiciously. Getting to her feet and walking toward him. She forgot how completely tired she was, he was too interested to know where he goes in the mornings.

He reached to the back of his neck and rubbed it uneasily. "I…don't want to say… It's kind of not like me…" he said

"Beast boy. I'm not going to judge you. Just tell me where you usually go, please." That was a word Raven never thought she'd ever hear herself say. Please. And in a begging tone at that, but this was interesting. She wanted to know where Beast boy goes. It seemed just too out of character for him to be the early bird. He sighed.

"Okay, don't laugh but…" he mumbled something under his breath.

"What?" Raven asked. He sighed again.

"I like to watch the sunrise." he said. That caught her a little off guard.

"Wait but I thought Robin goes up to watch the sunrise too. I didn't think he knew you got up that early." Raven pointed out, remembering the one time that she ran into him on the roof.

"Weeellll…I kinda leave the tower. There's this island a ways out that I really like to go to." he said. Then his eyes lit up and he smiled widely "Hey I could take you there!" he said. Raven seemed a bit taken aback by his excitement.

"Are you sure? How far is it? I might not be able to levitate pretty far. I didn't get a very good night's sleep, thanks to our chatty alien princess." Raven said sarcastically. Beast boy chuckled and downed the bottle of water in almost one gulp.

"So that's why you looked so tired. Shoulda known." He said, shaking his head "C'mon it's not that far, I'll carry you." he said. Raven looked at him curiously.

"If it's not that far then I can fly. You don't have to carry me." She said. Beast boy shrugged his shoulders.

"I know I don't HAVE to but I want to." he said, the words came out so easily, he had no idea how straight forward he sounded to Raven right now.

"Look, this arguing is pointless. If you want to show me then show me." she said with a slight smile "I'll be fine. I can fly." she assured. Beast boy flashed her one of his signature cocky grins.

"Okay, and don't worry, I know your supposed to be with Cyborg today but he doesn't get up till 10. I'll have you home early." he teased. He sounded like a boyfriend promising his girlfriends father to have her home before midnight. Raven gave him a half smile.

"C'mon, it's great." he said enthusiastically.

--

The flight there wasn't so bad. They flew straight into the sun which Raven wasn't to grateful about but there was little wind resistance. She found herself constantly stealing glances of the peregrine flacon flying a few feet away from her. Every now and then she would blush as she recalled the rather embarrassing conversation she shared with Starfire the previous night. It took only a few minutes but it was only now that she remembered how tired she really was and how much energy it took her to fly when she was like this. She had not meditated in three days and though she didn't need to, it was relaxing and it helped her in more ways than one.

She saw the green falcon descending to a small island, no larger than the one that Titans tower stood on, though there were many differences. Titans Tower stood on a rock-like island covered in moss and short grass. This Island had a few trees and lush plants growing on it. It seemed to be more soil than rock and there was some sand along the edges. It looked like a mini-forest with a mini-beach. Raven had to admit that she was impressed that Beast boy had found this place.

Once on the soil, the falcon transformed in to the green changeling she had come to know over the years…or at least she thought she knew him…until he said something totally off-kilter for him.

"Isn't it beautiful?" he said adoringly, staring at the trees, then turning his head out towards the ocean. Raven quirked her eyebrow.

"Wow, this IS really out of character for you." she said "I never heard you call anything beautiful."

He chuckled a bit and smiled at her warmly "It just so happens that I find lots of things beautiful." he said

"Like what?" she asked, her curiosity piqued

"Well…I really think that forests are beautiful, any kind of forest at all. I just love them. I think trees are beautiful, animals, the ocean, sunrises, sunsets, the moon, the stars, the rain, you…" he stopped dead in his tracks and looked away from her, blushing madly. Raven was certainly caught off guard at this as well and blushed just as deeply.

They stayed like that for a few moments, too embarrassed to say anything. Until Raven finally had the courage to ask if she heard right.

"Ummm…did…you think I'm beautiful?" she asked, hesitantly. Beast boy still faced away form her, afraid to tell her the truth but too afraid to lie to her either. He cleared his throat loudly.

"err….y-yeah…" he mumbled it so quietly that Raven almost didn't hear it. She did however and looked away, still blushing but also smiling somewhat. She decided to change the subject for his sake.

"So…why do you like forests so much?" she asked, sitting down. She was still pretty tired.

Beats boy's head snapped down to her, slightly relieved for the change in subject. He smiled lightly and sat down as well.

"Well…I guess it's because I grew up in Africa. I got to have a hands on experience with all the wildlife and plants." he confessed. Raven looked at him surprised.

"You grew up in Africa? Were you born there?" she asked

"Nah, I was born here in the states. When I was like four My parents and I moved to Africa to cure the diseases they had there and study the environment. They were biologists you know." he smiled proudly. Raven's expression went from surprised to impressed and then to curious.

"Interesting. Why haven't you told us about your parents before? You never talk about your past." she said. Beast boy laughed a humorless chuckle.

"Look who's talking. I didn't have one of the best childhoods and I always thought that if I told any of you about it or talked to you guys about it, you wouldn't think of me the same way or judge me or pity me…"he trailed off, his eyes becoming sad.

"Beast boy we're your friends. We won't pity you or judge you or think of you differently. All that matters is that you've come to terms with your past, if you haven't then it's best that you do talk about it. I can tell you from experience that it's best not to try to ignore it and hide it away." she said wisely.

She observed as Beast boy stayed silent for a few seconds, thinking over her offer. Raven took this time to look out over the ocean. The sun appeared to be rising quickly but it still made the waves, glimmer in a yellowish hue, she wondered what it was like in the early dawn.

"I got my powers while living in Upper Lamumba, in Africa. My parents and I moved there when I was 5."

Raven listened intently as Beast boy began to tell her all about his tragic childhood. She would be lying if she said she wasn't curious to how he gained his powers, so now she looked at him attentively, hanging on every word he said.

"My parents were working outside the lab they built in the forest. I know, weird place to conduct genealogy experiments right?" he joked. He was a little surprised to she that Raven didn't knew what he was talking about. Wow that's a first.

"Anyway, I was playing in the grasses near this tree. I can remember this part so clearly. I can still hear the monkey's screech in my mind…" he trailed off, leaving Raven confused. Once he caught himself, he started up again.

"Sorry uhhh….anyway. There was this monkey that was in the tree I was playing near. I was curious so I decided to try to call it down to me. It was interesting cause it was a green monkey. It came down to eye level with me and looked innocent. I remember reaching my hand out to pet it when it suddenly bit my arm. It hurt but the pain that followed was excruciating. Apparently the monkey carried a disease called Sakutia, or green fever. It's not all that common among animals but they can survive it. Humans however, can't." he paused, apparently reliving every detail as he explained it.

"My mother hurried over to me when she heard me scream. I remember her telling my father _'Mark, his skin is turning green. It's Sakutia'_."

"They rushed me inside where my father gave me a serum that changed the code of my DNA. I'm technically not human. I'm literally an animal, but that was the only way to save my life. The result was my skin turned green and later I realized that I could turn into animals."

"I found out when my mother and I were faced with a black mamba, one of the deadliest snakes in the world. I remember wishing that I could save her life by getting rid of the snake. I was just hoping for a mongoose to come by and save us and part of me was wishing that I was a mongoose. I knew mongooses attacked and ate snakes and as soon as I thought of that I had an urge to attack it. I closed my eyes and I was soon eye level with the snake and….I ate it." he looked at Raven's expression which showed little emotion but behind her deep violet eyes he saw nothing but concern and sympathy, not pity, sympathy. He felt a little more courageous to go on.

"So the first animal I ever turned into was a mongoose." he smiled "My parents freaked out of course but they were used to it for a while. I used to actually practice my abilities by fighting with the older kids in the tribe that we lived near. King Tawaba would always encourage me and the other kids to fight to ready ourselves for manhood and when I got my powers, the kids would suggest an animal they wanted to fight and I turned into it. It was really great exercise and I made sure no one got hurt." his smile then faded.

"My life was actually pretty good until…my parents died." Raven felt a surge of emotion toward him, she wanted nothing but to hug him as he released all his pain from the past.

"I was with them on an expedition down the Nile River. Our boat sprung a leak and we were heading for a waterfall. My father told me to turn into a bird and fly away from there. He told me that they were going to be all right…so I left." his voice was slowly becoming angry as he clenched his teeth and tears were forming on the brim of his eyes.

"Goddamn it! I could have saved them!" he shouted "As I was flying, I looked back to see my parents watching me and…then they went over…I tried to find them at the bottom of the waterfall but they weren't there…they were gone." he stopped, and Raven knew that this is as far as he was willing to go. The pain was just too much.

She slid a little closer to him and rubbed his back to convey her sympathy, then he did something unexpected. He curled into her arms and began to weep. This caught Raven off guard but she wrapped her arms around him and comforted him. They stayed like that for about ten minutes before Beast boy's lung spasms stopped and the tears came to a halt.

He picked up his head from her and looked her in the eyes. "Thanks Raven." he said. He smiled at her softly and she returned the favor. "No problem" she said.

They sat in a somewhat awkward silence, still incredibly close and holding each other. Beast boy began to break out in a cold sweat while raven looked in the direction of the water nervously. Both were trying hard not to make eye contact and make the situation even more awkward but Beast boy couldn't resist. Raven was still looking away towards the sun and the water and Beast boy stared at her.

Her face appeared to be glowing in the light of the sun, she looked angelic and even more beautiful than he thought she ever could. The water reflected small ripples in her violet eyes, making it seem as if you could dive into the windows of her eyes and bathe in her soul. He smiled to himself and looked in the direction she was.

"It's amazing isn't it. " he said. Raven turned to him curiously. "The sun and the ocean are complete opposites but together they make complete harmony, and one of the mot beautiful sights I've ever seen." he said meaningfully.

Raven stared at him in shock. She was very impressed that Beast boy….BEAST BOY of all people could be so deep. It made her look at him and an all new light…and deepened her crush on him even further.

Beast boy then stood up and stretched. "We gotta go. It's almost time for your date with Cyborg." he smirked.

Raven rolled her eyes and stood up too "Yeah that's what it is. " she said sarcastically. Beast boy chuckled.

"Okay, c'mon Rae. Wouldn't want to keep Borgy Bear waiting" he snickered. Raven shuddered.

"_Never _say that again." she said. Beast boy rolled his eyes and took off in the form of an eagle while Raven levitated off the island, smiling all the way.

--

"Can you hand me the two by two? Then the number 3 wrench? And can you get me the 6 ½?" Cyborg asked. He was lying on his back underneath the T-Car while Raven was handing him the various tools he need4ed to do upgrades on his car.

They had been at it since Raven got home with Beast boy from the island. She was somewhat in a dazed state when Cyborg had come down and cooked up every last piece of bacon left (3 lbs. Beast boy of course barfed at the sight). She was still thinking about Beast boy and how he could have had such a hard life and be the annoying little prankster she knew all so well…well…at least he used to be. She was seeing changes in him and was wondering what was causing it. He was changing into an almost new person…and she liked it. He was still his goofy, jokey self at times, but she could tell that there was a distinct maturity change that was happening to him, like a metamorphosis. And she hadn't noticed it till he had gotten her the necklace.

"Uh hello? Raven?" Cyborg sang to get her attention. She jerked her head down towards the metallic man under the car, unaware that she was even looking away, and handed him the tool she was holding on too.

"Whatcha thinking about Raven? You got that look on your face." he said. Good thing Cyborg was under the T-Car otherwise he would have seen Raven blush slightly at what she as really thinking about and also because she didn't know she looked a certain way when she was thinking.

"Uh, nothing. Just a little tired, I didn't get much sleep last night." she said truthfully, she was still a little tired from lack of sleep and the short flight she took this morning. Cyborg chuckled half-heartedly.

"What, was Star asking too many questions?" he assumed.

"You have no idea how close you hit the target there." She replied sarcastically. "I asked her a question and she wouldn't shut up about it." Raven said, shaking her head.

"What question?" he asked.

"I'm not at liberty to say." raven replied simply.

"Awe, come one Raven I promise I won't tell anyone." he whined under the car.

"You? Master of all blackmail? I don't think so." she said

"oooo _THAT_ juicy huh?" Cyborg snickered.

"I said no!" She said, banging the bottom of the car with her fist so it created an unpleasant sound that was a little too loud for Cyborg's sonic ears.

"Ow! Hey if that was about Tuesday, I said I was sorry!" he complained, sliding out from under the car, fresh oil stains on his blue fusion shoulders.

"No, I've completely forgiven you for that." she smirked "I just wanted to annoy you as much as you annoy me." she said simply. Cyborg groaned and asked for another tool and slid under the car once again.

"I thought BB was the one you take out all your annoyance on?" he asked.

"I don't take out all my annoyances on him." she protested. Cyborg let out a disbelieving laugh.

"Yeah, and I'm sure your gonna throw yourself at him and kiss him till he's one big hickey too." he said sarcastically. Though he didn't see Raven's pale complexion take on a red so bright it even put Christmas colors to shame.

"I'm serious! I don't do that…do I?" she said, her voice going from angry to ashamed in an instant. Cyborg caught this and slid out again to see Raven's guilty face.

"Awe, come on Rae. I'm sorry I said anything. I'm just telling you what it looks like form my point of view." he said, sitting next to her and wiping the oil stains off his armor.

"No your right. I treat him horribly, even when he doesn't do anything." she said, her voice cracking slightly. This warned Cyborg that tears were to come.

"Raven listen to me." he said sternly in an older brother type authority. "You are not horrible to him. He's just in the wrong place at the wrong time, like trying to talk to you when your already mad. If I were you I'd chuck him out the window too. " he chuckled. He stopped as he realized that he had just reminded Raven of exactly HOW she used to punish him for no reason.

"Uh…Listen. A lot of the time's he's deserved it okay. He should know better than to get on you bad side. I don't know why he just doesn't ease up and leave you alone." Cyborg lied, he knew every well why Beast boy never gave up on Raven.

Raven looked up at him, sadness and guilt still present in her eyes. She had not really expected to exercise Timid today. "No. I know I've been horrible to him over the years and he probably hates me for it" she said, despite that morning. Cyborg rolled his eyes at how untrue he knew that statement was.

"Raven, trust me on this. He could never hate you…he could never not like you. Just go with me on this one, he CAN'T hate you. " Cyborg smiled "My dad used to tell me that a true friend is someone who likes you for you. No matter what you do, no matter what you say, how you look, where your form or anything. A true friend is always there." he said. His human eye seemed a little glassy now that he was bringing up his father.

"You've never mentioned your father before." Raven stated. Cyborg smiled.

"Yeah, I don't even know where he is. I was in a car accident that killed my mother and my father worked for S.T.A.R labs. I was pretty beat up in the accident and he made me half robot to save my life. He used to tell me to forget how I looked and that true friends would look past that to see the person inside. All my old friends abandoned me when they found out what I became." he said sadly, looking down that the ground beneath his mechanical feet.

"I ran away and found Jump City. I thought that if I stayed here, I wouldn't need to face my father again, I was afraid that he would fear me and abandon me like my friends did……but I abandoned him." he said, falling forward and resting his head on his knees. Raven scooted closer and patted his back, unsure if he could really feel it through his metallic armor.

He sat back up after a while and smiled. "He really was an awesome guy you know." he said. "So that's why I think you should listen to him. Beast boy is never gonna hate ya. He never could okay. And he's been lightening up lately on the whole annoying you thing and you haven't tossed him out of the tower in like, 3 weeks." he said, getting off the table to rummage through his tool chest….literally. He opened a compartment door in his chest and took out his lucky screwdriver.

"So don't worry about it 'kay?" he asked. Raven smiled and nodded. "That's my baby sister." Cyborg said hugging her slightly so as not to crush her.

"Baby?" Raven complained.

"You know what I mean Rae." Cyborg said, rolling his eyes. Raven frowned.

"And stop calling me Rae, my name is Raven" she protested.

"You let BB call you Rae." Cyborg smirked, getting down on his back again.

"I do not!" Raven denied

"Oh yes you do. I hear it all the time and you don't say a word. That's why I thought it was okay to call you Rae." he explained

"I do NOT let Beast boy call me Rae." she said again

"Yes you do-o!" Cyborg sang, sliding under the car.

"No I don't!" raven almost shouted. Cyborg slid out form under the car again.

"Hey now can you tell me what Star was talking to you about for so long?" he asked/teased.

"UGH!"

--

"Hey Beast boy."

"WAAAAHHHH!" Beast boy screamed. He sprang form the couch and landed on the floor quite painfully. He turned around to glare at whoever surprise him like that. Robin.

"Uh, is this a bad time?" the leader asked. Beast boy shook away his glare and stood up and rubbed the area of impact.

"No, I just didn't hear you." Beast boy said. Robin raised his eyebrows.

"You? The one with sensitive ears?" Robin said doubtfully. Beast boy sighed.

"I was thinking okay. I've been known to do that form time to time." Beast boy joked.

"Ah okay, you nervous about your day with Raven tomorrow?" Robin asked, though it didn't sound like a question at all.

"Like you wouldn't believe. Today before you guys got up we met up in the kitchen and…"

"whoa, whoa, whoa." Robin interrupted "YOU were up before ME?" Robin questioned disbelievingly.

"Yeah…I didn't get much sleep." Beast boy lied. He didn't want anyone to know when he actually got up…though Raven he knew he could trust not to make a big deal out of it.

"Anyway…We went outside and talked and…God I feel so stupid for saying that!" Beast boy scolded himself.

"Say what?" Robin asked, a dangerous tone in his voice.

"Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to insult her but what I said was kinda weird coming form my mouth." he explained.

"What did you day?" Robin asked, his tone of voice still dangerous.

"I was looking at her and…I made a comparison between her and the ocean, though I didn't say that. I said That the sun and the ocean were two totally opposite things but together they made absolute harmony. I was comparing her to the ocean and me to the sun. I'm the sun for obvious reasons, bright and energetic and blah blah blah. The ocean is just so different. It's incredibly beautiful at the surface but when you dive deeper, it gets more and more mysterious." he said

Robin stared at his teammate and friend completely flabbergasted. There was no way that this could be Beast boy. He's the silly little prankster of the Teen Titans that has only two main passions, videogames and girls. Yet here he was, mostly grown up and mature. Robin never thought he'd ever hear a metaphor or simile come out of Beast boy's mouth.

"You should have seen the way she was looking at me after I said that." Beast boy continued, snapping Robin out of hid doubts that this was really Beast boy.

"She probably thinks I'm an idiot now." Beast boy moaned.

"I think _everyone _thinks that Beast boy." Robin said sarcastically.

"Not helping." Beast boy snapped

"Okay, okay. She was probably just surprised or impressed or a mixture of the two. You know Raven, she was probably just didn't know how romantic you could be." Robin said. Beast boy looked at him strangely.

"That was romantic?" Beast boy asked

"Basically yeah." Robin answered casually.

"Awe, Rob didn't know you felt that way." Beast boy swooned.

"Shut up! You know what I meant." Robin scolded

"That's right, you save that stuff for Star." Beast boy whispered, this did not go unnoticed by Robin. His cheeks flushed a small pinkish color but as he was about to retort, the doors swished open.

"Okay now you sure you're going to do whatever I do?" Cyborg asked Raven, who made the mistake of asking her what she wanted to do and facing her annoyance that she was going to do whatever he wanted to do. It wasn't her day, she's not going to have HER day till Saturday. Why didn't anyone get that through their thick head!

"Yes, whatever it is…within reason." she warned, making sure she didn't do anything embarrassing. Cyborg rolled his eyes.

"Always within reason." he assured. He turned to Beast boy and Robin "YO! How bout a little 4 player action?" Cyborg asked.

"Sure"

"Totally"

Came the replies. Raven sighed _'of course' _she thought. She and Cyborg headed over to the game console where Beast boy was looking through the controllers I a different basket. Robin was setting up the console and pulled out four games he was sure even Raven wouldn't mind playing and that were fairly easy for her.

"Bad news guys, we only have 3 controllers. Star broke the last 2 remember?" Beast boy said. The other three shuddered at what happened last time. Starfire had broken two controllers and after she broke the second one, she was so furious at the game that she blasted the whole TV window to smithereens.

"oh well, looks like I can't play." Raven sighed overdramatically, thinking that she was definitely out for the count.

"Oh no you don't. You're playing." Beast boy smirked.

"Beast boy, I know even _you're_ smart enough to know that 4 people and 3 controllers isn't going to work." she replied

"Ha, ha. Make fun of my thinking ability all you want. You're not getting out of this. This may be the ONLY time you'll ever play videogames and I'm not about to let you pass that up._ I _won't play." Beast boy said

"Wow you must really be in love with her to give up videogames for her." Cyborg said out loud without thinking.

Beast boy's eyes widened and Robin's mask almost fell off his eyes were so big. Beast boy broke out in an enormous blush that browned his face entirely. He glared at Cyborg so hard it matched Raven's icy stare she was throwing him right now. Cyborg just thought about what he just said and his human eye widened as well. Thank god for Beast boy Raven thought it was just a joke.

"Oh, very funny Cyborg." she said, a slight tint of pink on her cheeks. Robin and Beast boy sighed in relief.

"Dude I don't love her!" Beast boy convincingly protested which was partly the truth. He really didn't know if he loved her of he was going to love her. But right now he liked her and Cyborg was going to pay later.

"Okay, okay!" Cyborg said quickly. Admitting defeat easily. Beast boy turned his attention to Raven for the moment.

"So you gonna play if I don't?" he asked. She sighed in aggravation.

"I don't know how to play, or even how to work the buttons. I would die instantly." she said. She was running out of excuses.

"C'mon a smart girl like you? You'll have them memorized in no time. Besides, I'll help you with the buttons and everything." he said. Raven sighed again. There was no backing out.

"Fine, what game do you want to play?" she asked the others.

"Why don't we have Beast boy pick considering he's the only party not playing." Robin suggested. Beast boy quirked his eyebrow as well as Raven and Cyborg.

"You're going to regret that decision." Cyborg whispered to Robin while Beast boy selected a game.

He walked it over to Raven and showed her. Then he leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Scarlet Night. It's a zombie and ghost game, totally freaky. It's also my favorite. I can give you some good advice on this game, I have the top three high scores. Cyborg and Robin are weak at this game, you'll beat 'em no problem." he whispered. When he leaned away Raven was blushing slightly. His moist breath tickled her hear as he explained his choice.

"Okay! The name of the game is Scarlet Night! The object, to clear each level of zombies and ghosts and find every one of the gems before your lives are gone. Got it!" he said loudly, stating the object for Raven's benefit. Cyborg and Robin both nodded their heads as Raven just shrugged.

"All right! Let's kill some corpses!" Beast boy said enthusiastically, as he put in the game and the black screen came up and the menu was written in bloody gothic letters.

Robin scrolled through the male characters and found he one he traditionally uses for that game. A long black haired assassin with large sunglasses, hair in ponytail and light brown boots along with several large gins that lay on his belt.

Cyborg chose the most muscular of the male characters, with several knives and a load of special bombs that crossed his chest. He was bald and wore a camouflage headband across his forehead.

Raven was disgusted to find out that the first female character was a leather clad ninja with a sword and several pistols. _'Typical' _she thought. She was about to pass her up and move on to the next one when Beast boy leaned over to whisper in her ear again.

"I suggest her, she's all about stealth and that's what you need for this game. Trust me, when it comes to combat games Robin and Cyborg have the upper hand but believe me, when it comes to being sneaky, I'm your guy." he said. Raven looked at him curiously.

She figured that he actually _was_ trying to help her and if she was going to play a videogame she was going to need all the help she could get. She sighed and choose the slutty ninja for a character, Robin and Cyborg raised their eyebrows at her choice but didn't question it.

Robin pressed Start (he was player 1) and the game began.

--

Robin and Cyborg were shooting their weapons furiously as hundreds of ghosts seemed to pop up out of nowhere. Raven had accidentally opened a forbidden chest that Beast boy had warned her too late would reveal an endless tirade of ghosts.

Beast boy had told Raven a quick combination of buttons and she obediently obliged. Her character jumped several feet into the air and landed almost cat-like on the roof of a nearby house. On the roof there was a special bomb that she could drop on the chest and the ghosts would dissolve.

Beast boy gave her a triumphant grin at her that told her just how much he actually knew about this game. She dropped the bomb and the ghosts faded away into thin air. Robin and Cyborg sighed in relief and groaned that they had lost a lot of life points. They turned to glare at Raven but Beast boy quickly defended her.

"Ah, ah ah. Remember, she's a first time player." he said tauntingly. Robin and Cyborg both rolled their eyes and continued forward. Raven gave Beast boy a grateful smile.

"Thanks for the tip to go on the roof." she said

"no problem." Beast boy smiled. Raven returned the smile then turned to glare at her controller.

"ugh! I just don't know how to draw my weapons!" she complained

"Just press X and O together." he suggested. Raven tried the combination but nothing happened.

"It's not working." she said pathetically. Raven was a little frustrated that such a stupid waste of time like a videogame could be so complicated.

"Here, let me help." he said smoothly. He reached his left arm our around her and took a hold of her hand on the controller. He did the same thing with his right hand. As soon as he touched her hands, he felt a spark of electricity. Not the static kind but more of a …numbing sensation. He blushed immediately and looked up at her. Apparently she felt it too cause her face was showed signs of a pink tint.

"…and you just press these two…" Beast boy continued a little more softly. He applied pressure to her fingers on the buttons and her character soon drew her sword, ready to fight.

"…and you press L2 to switch weapons…" he said, his voice still soft. He moved her left hand to the side of the controller and pressed the L2 button. Her character withdrew her sword and took out a pistol.

Beast boy stayed like that for a couple ore seconds, not moving his hands or moving his eyes away from her face. Raven was still looking at his hands holding hers, just as frozen as he was.

"AHEM!" Cyborg cleared his throat loudly to awaken the two from their trance.

Beast boy and Raven looked up at him immediately. He had a small glare on his face and nodded toward the screen. He and Robin were almost to the next level. Raven returned her look to her hands and then to Beast boy who got the message.

"Oh, sorry" he said quickly, retracting his hands and resting them at his sides, he and Raven were both flushing a deep crimson color but it was almost hard to tell in the dark.

Raven began running her way through the level, attacking and destroying every zombie and ghost she was faced with. Beast boy would whisper a couple cheat codes to her that would allow her to do multiple flips before attacking or giving her the ability to move so fats she would confuse the creatures than catch them by surprise.

Beast boy was right about more than one thing. He really WAS good at this game and he was right, she did eventually memorize all the codes until she didn't need his help so much anymore. Beast boy leaned back comfortably on the couch and watch as Robin and Cyborg were foolish enough to face the demons head on while Raven, cleverly distracted her prey and made a successful sneak attack. She had lost no life points so far and she had killed the most zombies and ghosts.

THE LAST LEVEL

"You ready for this?" Robin challenged his two playing teammates.

"I was born ready, don't cry too much when I win Raven." Cyborg teased.

"Yeah and don't stain the carpet with too many tears when I beat your ass." Raven said venomously. Beast boy chuckled and whispered.

"Calm down Rae, this is starting to turn me on." he joked. Raven rolled her eyes but she had difficulty hiding the blush in her cheeks.

"Don't make me beat you too." she smirked. Beast boy raised his hands in defeat and smirked back.

--

"C'mon, go go!"

"Not there move!"

"I can't believe you two."

Raven was beating Robin and Cyborg by a landside. Beast boy was watching with a cocky grin on his face. He was rather proud that he had been able to teach Raven to play his favorite videogame…and that she was good at it! Robin and Cyborg were constantly shooting at the ghosts and zombies head on. It never occurred to them to get a different tactic.

As the two guys ran through the streets after shooting down the last of the zombies, the last ghost appeared in front of them. A tall powerful Samurai that was three times the size of Cyborg's character towered before them in ancient red robes.

The samurai spit a mouthful of fire at the two. Robin countered the attack with his characters freeze discs. Cyborg began shooting the apparition with everything his computer animated self could manage, but he wasn't able to inflict much damage at all. The samurai cackled tauntingly and towered even higher. Robin and Cyborg had lost several more life points and that fueled the spirit's energy.

Suddenly a quick black shadow dropped down on the apparition, wielding a katana. Raven's character stood before the samurai before she fled and was hidden once again. The surprise attack weakened the boss ghost quite a bit but not enough. Suddenly the same person sliced through the spirit completely and weakened him even more.

"Cyborg, Robin. You may do the honors." Raven said smugly to her leader and teammate. They bother glared at her but didn't refuse. Robin shot the samurai with his gun and Cyborg chucked several explosives at him. He disintegrated completely and the game was over.

_**CONGRATULATIONS PLAYER 3!**_

The screen read. Suddenly the screen showed the top scores that were recently posted. A blank was at the top of the screen, showing where Raven was to put her initials. They were above several scores made by GML. Garfield Mark Logan.

"Well, well, well BB. Looks like she beat ya." Cyborg sneered, hoping that this would strike up some competitiveness in his green friend, but he only merely shrugged.

"So? That only means that we'll have to settle the score in a head to head, huh Rae?" Beast boy challenged, nudging her with his elbow. Raven smiled and rolled her eyes while she put in RRR in the top spot on the score board.

"I don't think so. This is the ONLY time I'm planning on playing videogames. I still prefer reading to this, but admittedly it wasn't as bad as I though it would be." she admitted. Cyborg looked at her strangely and whispered to Robin.

"See what I mean? She let BB call her Rae but she snapped at me for calling her that this afternoon." he said quietly. Robin raised his eyebrows and looked at her strangely as well, thankfully she didn't notice and stood up right away.

"I'm going to head for bed. I'll see you tomorrow Beast boy." she said casually, as she turned to leave.

"So you only address me? Must be eager to see me then." Beast boy joked, cocking his eyebrows. Raven rolled her eyes.

"No, tomorrow's my day with you remember? I'll see you then." she said, before turning towards the door and letting it swish closed behind her. Leaving a blanched Beast boy to turn to his friends in worry.

"Still nervous?" Robin asked. His answer came when Beast boy's eyes rolled up into his head and he fainted.


	6. Friday

Raven lay staring at her bedroom ceiling. Thinking about the day ahead of her. It would be an understatement to say she was nervous. She had been so busy freeing her emotions that she neglected to acknowledge her empathic ability, she had no idea how Beast boy felt about her. What if she let on that she liked him? What if he found out she liked him but he didn't like her? How should she behave? If she was the old Raven, sarcastic and cold, he may hate her forever. If she's the new Raven, open and happy, she may be too nice and he'll get suspicious.

Raven took a deep breath and let it out slowly "Calm down Raven. Just be yourself and you'll be fine." she assured herself "I'm not going to let one person change who I am." she said.

She stood up, grabbed her cloak and headed for breakfast.

SIMOULTANEOUSLY

Beast boy lay staring at the sky, playing with the sand beneath his fingers. He was trying to relax his mind by going to his secret island, he wasn't having much luck.

'_Today's the day' _he thought_ 'I'm going to hang out with Raven for a while then…I'm going to ask her out' _he thought. It took a moment for that to sink in.

"I'm going to ask her out." he said aloud, just to be sure that's what he really was going to do.

"God what if she says no? Pff…what am I thinking, this is RAVEN for crying out loud. Of course she'll say no." he said, his doubt clouding him from his decision. He shook his head as if to clear his mind of these thoughts like an etch-a-sketch. He then remembered why he wanted to ask her out in the first place.

"She's smart…geez she's like the smartest person I know. She's funny. I have to admit it, she's funnier than me. I look up to her as a comedic goddess." he chuckled to himself "my purpose in life would be fulfilled if I could get her to laugh."

He lost himself in a daze for a minute before continuing.

"She's so strong-willed and opinionated. She never gives in to peer pressure or the hottest trends. She doesn't care what anyone else thinks and she'll never change who she is for anyone…and I never want her too. She's a challenge, I'll count myself the luckiest man in the universe if _I_ could get _her_ to smile. She's a mystery. It's so hard to figure her out and that's what makes her special. Girls are like books, a lot of them are easy to read like comic books but Raven's the dictionary." he smiled to himself

"She may not know it but I only annoy her because I want her to feel like she's our friend. I want to try to reach out to her and get her to come out of her shell. She's so secluded and that's why she feels alone all the time. She's never alone. Even if the other titans are smart enough to give her, her space. I can open my eyes and see how much Raven really needs some one. I just wish that I could get her to show her true colors…make her feel comfortable to smile on a regular basis…ugh _again_ with her smile! She's just so beautiful when she smiles, her laugh is adorable, but her smile…it's flawless! Hell she's beautiful with or without her smile but when she smiles, you know there can never be anything wrong. The world shines a little brighter when she smiles. And her skin glows in the sunlight, it's almost as if it…sparkles. And her hair is gorgeous. Always pin straight, but when it blows in the wind it waves and billows around her face. And her violet color…it frames her face perfectly and contrasts her eyes…" Beast boy trailed off.

He paused his monologue, thinking about her eyes. He pictured her right in front of him, her beaming violet eyes burrowing deeper and deeper into his soul, and he let them. He welcomed them with open arms.

In the midst of his daydream he heard a bird flap it's wings only inches from his face and land on a stone nearby. His eyes snapped opened and he turned to look at the bird. It took only a moment for him to realize that it was a raven…and it was staring right at him. It cawed and if Beast boy's "raven" wasn't rusty, he swore it said

"What are you waiting for?"

Beast boy blinked at what he thought the black bird had said and immediately took off for titans tower, shifting into the same bird he just had an encounter with. When his companion cawed again however he heard loud and clear "Go get her."

--

Raven floated into the kitchen and found that she was the only one there. She let out a relieved sigh and floated to the refrigerator. As soon as she opened it she heard the common room doors swish open. She feared it was the person she thought it was…she was right. Beast boy walked through the doors and his eyes immediately fell on Raven, who was holding a cube of tofu.

Raven prepared herself for any ridicule that she would expect to hear from the changeling. She expected him to say "Well, well, well, finally caved in did ya?" she prepared to hear it but instead she heard.

"Do you know how to cook that?" he asked. She looked up at him curiously and shook her head no. he smiled at her warmly.

"Then let _me _take care of that. I'll even make you some real eggs, just in case you think tofu is absolutely disgusting." he chuckled. Raven looked at him utterly surprised.

Beast boy you don't have to do that. I don't normally eat breakfast anyway so if I don't like it then I can go without anything." she assured. Beast boy shook his head.

"No, I've got a lot planned today so you'll need your energy. Besides, if you _do_ like it then Cyborg can devour the poor un-hatched chickies." he said, mildly joking. Raven rolled her eyes at his vegetarian joke, then she turned to him again.

"Wait, you _planned_ today?" she asked. Beast boy blushed mildly and thankfully his back was to her at the time, getting two frying pans.

"Uh yeah. Of course, why not?" he said, a little nervous that she was seeing through him. Raven settled back into the chair.

"So you're not going to ask me what I want to do today like the others?" she asked. Beast boy chuckled, slightly relieved.

"I don't think so but I can't make any promises. I know you want to do what we like to do but I don't want you to be completely miserable." he said "Besides, you and I are complete opposites, we like totally different things." he said again.

"Starfire and I are opposites and she's my best friend, plus I had a good time with her the other day." Raven said. Beast boy quirked his eyebrow at her as he emptied the tofu into one of the pans and reached to get the eggs out of the fridge.

"Then I guess it's true what they say about opposites huh?" Beast boy said. Then instantly regretted it. Raven didn't say anything except a meek "yeah" in response. Both knew that Beast boy was referring to the phrase Opposites Attract.

Beast boy nervously, took one of the eggs out and was looking at it hesitantly. He was about to crack it the edge of the pan when a hand took it away from him. He turned to his right and found Raven holding the egg.

"I'll do this part. I'm not going to make you go against your beliefs over breakfast." she said, as she cracked the egg in the pan with ease. Beast boy smiled at her.

"Thanks Rae." he said. He turned to his own frying pan and began to move the tofu around so it would cook but not burn. Raven looked at him curiously from the corner of her eye. Beast boy's peripheral vision caught this and he turned to her bewildered.

"What?" he asked.

"Why do you call me that?" she asked. Beast boy cocked his eyebrows.

"Why do I call you what?" he asked, turning back to his tofu.

"Rae, why do you call me Rae?" she questioned "No matter how many times I told you not to." she added. Beast boy chuckled but thought about her question.

"I guess…since you seclude yourself so much, I just want you to feel like our friend." he said "I mean, we all have nicknames. Star, Rob, Cy and BB, though occasionally I'm referred to as Grass Stain or Lima Bean." He could have swore he heard Raven giggle but when he looked up at her she only had a half smile on her lips. He continued.

"So, I thought that…if you hade a nickname, you would want to be around more often." Beast boy said somewhat sheepishly. Raven gave him a grateful smile.

"Thank You. That's really thoughtful of you." she complimented, the blood rushing to her pale cheeks. Beast boy smiled at her.

"Don't thank me." he said "I just like you being around. You may not know it but whether you're here or not has a big effect on me--us!" he aid quickly, receiving a slight tint in his cheeks. Raven caught his slip of the tongue and blushed a little deeper.

"Thanks" she said "That means a lot to me." she said more softly. Beast boy picked his head up and looked at her.

"no problem" he said just as soft. He chuckled when Raven unsuccessfully flipped one of her eggs.

"Cooking isn't your thing is it?" he joked. Raven rolled her eyes.

"How could you tell?" she replied sarcastically. Beast boy chuckled.

"Here, let me help." he said. He took a hold of her hand that held the spatula and guided it around the pan.

Again that spark that they felt last night was there again. They both refused to look at each other for fear that they wouldn't be able to look away. Raven was watching Beast boy's every move as he held her hand tightly. She could feel many emotions coming off of Beast boy now that she was paying attention to her empathic abilities. Beast boy's heart was racing and he was sure he looked ridiculously brown. Beast boy could hear that faint, irregular beating of a heart that wasn't his. He realized that it was Raven's and wondered why her heart was beating so fast.

It was exactly this moment that both titans heads snapped up to the sound of the common room doors opening as Starfire, Cyborg and Robin walked in and stared at their friends oddly. Raven and Beast boy were frozen, Beast boy was unable to remove his hand and Raven was unable to stop the creeping blush in her cheeks.

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, the other three titans just moved to the table. Raven and Beast boy had the feeling that they knew something that they didn't.

"Morning guys." Robin said. Beast boy was suddenly aware of his arm and retracted it quickly and scratched the back of his neck.

"Uh, morning. How you guys doing?" he asked awkwardly.

"Fine" Cyborg shrugged "Oh and by the way, your tofu crap is burning." he smirked.

Beast boy whirled around to see that indeed his tofu was now taking on a blackish color. He yelped and hurried to turn off the stove. Unfortunately the once white mesh was deemed inedible and Beast boy threw it away. Raven looked at him sympathetically and placed the other eggs on the table.

"C'mon, we can go to that vegetarian café you like." Raven suggested. Beast boy shook his head.

"No you should eat, we'll be busy." he smiled. Raven rolled her eyes.

"I don't think so. If we're going to be busy then you'll need something to eat and I still have yet to try tofu. We'll go to the café." she said.

"Raven you wouldn't like that place. It's full of hippies wearing organically grown wheat skirts." he said. "I only go there cause the food is good. Like I said, I want to make this as painless as possible for you."

"Then don't make her eat that damn tofu." Cyborg chuckled.

"Not helping." Beast boy glared. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Then we'll get it to go and eat in the park or something." Raven said. Beast boy quirked his eyebrow.

"Why the park?" he asked.

"I…I don't know just anywhere. I want you to be able to feel like your having a normal day too you know. I'm not trying to torcher you." she said. Beast boy chuckled and smiled at her warmly.

"Ok we'll go. Why don't you get your hologram ring and I'll get mine. Then we can go." he smiled. Raven sighed, relieved that the argument was finally over.

"Sounds like a plan. I'll meet you at your door." she said, and she teleported herself through the floor. Beast boy gave a thumbs up to his friends who returned the gesture. He ran out the door and to his room.

"Wow, Grass Stains actually going to go through with it." Cyborg said aloud. Not realizing that Starfire, who didn't know about Beast boy's feelings for Raven, was in the room.

"Go through what Cyborg?" Starfire asked.. Cyborg blanched and Robin smacked his head with his hand.

"Uhhh…nothing Star, just an expression." he lied.

"Oh, and what does this expression mean?" she inquired.

"It means that _some_ people don't know how to keep their mouths shut!" Robin snapped at Cyborg.

"Well she's going to find out anyway so we might as well tell her." Cyborg said, making it worse.

"Friends please, why do you keep secrets from me?" Starfire said, on the verge of tears, that her friends didn't trust her.

"No Star it's just that, we promised Beast boy we wouldn't say anything. It's his secret." Robin explained.

"Oh, then I understand. Raven has entrusted me with a secret that I shall keep from you as well." Starfire said. Cyborg quirked his eyebrow.

"Really?" he said, extremely interested.

"Ah! Don't even think about it." Robin warned. Cyborg's shoulder's sulked and he devoured half the plate of eggs in one mouthful

"Ya know. BB's not the only one keeping secrets around here." Cyborg said dangerously to Robin. Robin's eyes narrowed behind his mask.

"Then I shall question no further. Please excuse me friends. I wish to prepare for the day." Starfire said cheerily and flew out the door. Robin glared at Cyborg.

"So when're you going to ask her out? he asked.

"Ugh!" Robin moaned.

--

"Tofu for the lady." Beast boy said. Placing a plate of tofu in front of Raven. She and Beast boy arrived at the Vegetarian Café a few minutes ago and to Raven's relief, there were only two other people there, besides the workers, and they were more interested in each other than the two at the opposite end of the café.

"Happy that hardly anyone's here?" Beast boy asked, as if he read Raven's mind. Raven looked at him and made a strange face.

"…er…yeah…" she said, an awkward tone in her voice. Beast boy picked up on this immediately and his face held a look of confusion and concern.

"What's wrong?" he asked. Raven looked at him again and smiled.

"Nothing it's just…I'm really not used to seeing you look like that." she smiled. Beast boy returned the smile and ran a hand through his messy blonde hair.

True, because of the holographic ring. He hardly had any features of Beast boy anymore. His forest green hair was now a dirty blonde, his grass green skin was now peach and slightly tanned, the ring hid his pointed ears and fangs. He was hardly recognizable. The only things that stayed the same were his eyes.

"Yeah well I could say the same about you. You don't even _look_ like yourself." Beast boy commented.

Normally Raven didn't feel the need to wear her holographic ring at all, though she didn't have tons of screaming fans always chasing her when she went out in public like Beast boy did. Also it would give the paparazzi some great stories if she was seen in public, alone, with Beast boy. Raven's hologram was quite different. Her skin tone was a normal color of light peach and her hair was short and black but the difference was that she had a few streaks of blue in her hair. Hey, blue _was_ her favorite color. Again her only unchanged feature were her eyes.

Beast boy picked up a streak of her blue hair and examined it. "What persuaded you to get your hologram's hair dyed." he asked curiously. Raven took back her hair and put it back in it's original place. She shrugged.

"It's just something to remind me that I'm not a regular person. Something to remind me that I'm…different." she said somewhat sadly, looking down and letting her hair fall past her ear and hide her face.

She felt something brush her cheek. She looked up to see Beast boy leaning over the table with his hand outstretched, tucking her hair behind her ear again. He smiled at her warmly.

"What makes you think that being different is a bad thing? Who cares if your different? Don't just accept it Raven, embrace it. Because we're different, we save thousands of _normal_ people everyday." he said meaningfully.

Raven smiled at him and without anything to say to the sentiment she stared down at her tofu unsure.

"Raven, it's not going to bite you," Beast boy chuckled "the point is for _you_ to bite _it_." he said smiling. Raven managed a half smile at him then back at the white cube.

She took her fork and dug into the meat substitute painfully slow. She raised it to her lips and took a bite. She clenched her eyes and expected the foul flavor that Cyborg was always complaining about. Instead she tasted almost nothing, the texture was definitely interesting but not awful. It was pretty good considering it had no flavor. Beast boy sat back in his chair and smiled at her, he already finished off his tofu cube.

"Well? How is it? It's not as bad as that metal carnivore says it is." he said. Raven swallowed with surprising ease and looked at him.

"I couldn't taste anything." She said stupidly. Beast boy rolled his eyes, still smiling.

"Well, duh. It's not supposed to have flavor. You're supposed to cook it with something but it's still pretty good by itself right?" he asked. Raven smiled and nodded.

"Yes, if I can keep this bit down I can finish the rest." she said sarcastically. Beast boy chuckled and waited patiently for her to finish, once she was done they headed out and Raven looked to Beast boy to where they were going first.

"I have tickets to go see a movie I'm sure you'd like. It starts in an hour, maybe we could like go for a walk or something before we head to the theater. The parks like ten minutes away so we could go there, plus it's still a weekday so there'll hardly be any people there…it'll be quiet." he sang. He knew Raven adored peace and quiet.

Raven pondered this for a moment then glanced at Beast boy "What movie? Do NOT tell me it's Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter." she said. Beast boy chuckled.

"Actually I considered those two," he said, Raven glared at him a bit "But, I didn't get tickets for them, I got tickets for a new movie that came out a while ago. Twilight." he said. Raven looked at him curiously as they entered the park.

"Never heard of it." she said.

"I don't really know what it's about either but I heard it's suppose to be good." he said. Raven rolled her eyes

"I see you did your research." she said sarcastically. Beast boy laughed.

"Yeah, but Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings wouldn't have been good, I read the books already." he said casually. Raven stopped in her tracks and looked at him incredulously.

"You what?" she asked, dumbfounded. Beast boy put on his cocky grin and began to sweat slightly.

"I read the books." he said again, a little more smugly. Raven scrunched her face.

"Since when do _you_ read?" he asked

"Okay, remember last week when you told me to do something more productive and read for once?" he asked. Raven nodded.

"Yeah, that's when you were killing brain cells via television." she commented. Beast boy rolled his eyes and continued.

"Anyway. I actually took your advice and read those books cause I know they're popular. If I couldn't read them then I would borrow one of your books." he chuckled, though Raven didn't seem to hear that it was a joke.

"Just kidding Rae." he said. Raven rolled her eyes and continued walking.

"Well, anyway, don't you remember when I was locked in my room for three days?" he asked. Raven shook her head.

"No because I was always locked in _my_ room, meditating." she said, Beast boy chuckled and continued.

"Right, well all that time I was finishing them." he said proudly

"You read a how many pages in three days??" she asked.

"a lot" he said simply

"Beast boy that over 1000 pages a day!" she said astounded. She was actually quite astonished that Beast boy had went and read a novel all because _she_ told him to.

"What? Don't you read like 10 books in a day?" he asked

"Yes but I'm a relatively fast reader. For you, that's pretty impressive." she complimented. Beast boy smiled an ear to ear grin.

"Really? Impressive? Me?" he asked quickly. Raven smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Yes but don't let it go to your head." Raven warned.

"Oh, but I will." he said smugly. Raven rolled her eyes

"How do you find the time to read an actual book? You never do around the tower." she said

"Hey I don't always go to that island to watch the sunrise in the mornings. I go there to read my comics and up until recently, actual books." he said proudly. Raven stared at him utterly surprised.

"Well, this completely redefines you." she said "I never thought that you of all people would read a book at your age level, let alone do it because I told you to." she commented. Beast boy blushed mildly and gave her a crooked smile. Raven then looked at him curiously.

"Why _did_ you do it?" she asked him. Beast boy pretended to play dumb.

"Do what?" he asked stupidly. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Why did you go read a book because I told you to. You never did that before." she said. Beast boy looked down and smiled nervously.

"I…don't know," he lied "I guess that I just went with what you said because I wanted to try it out. I mean you tell me to go get a book and stop annoying you all the time so…I guess I just wanted to see what the difference was." he said "Plus that island is really peaceful." he said, trying to change the subject. Raven picked up on this and went along with it.

"Yeah, I'm surprised that no one from the tower goes there. I would have thought that Starfire would love that place." she commented. Beast boy's awkward smile was back.

"Well…you're the only other person I told. Otherwise no one in Jump City knows about it." he said Raven looked at him curiously.

"Why did you decide to show me?" she asked. Beast boy smiled warmly at her, slowly talking to her was becoming more and more comfortable.

"I dunno. I guess your the most trustworthy person I've ever known. I mean, Robin would probably keep it quiet but no way could he go without teasing me, Starfire would 'accidentally' blab it out, Cyborg? Yeah right, The king of all blackmail? The only other person I trusted was Terra, but I never told her about it…Terra………I trusted her and I got burned, broken and torn. Plus she's in a place where I'll never have to see her again." he said, his voice growing angry and his hands clenching.

Raven looked at him sympathetically and subconsciously wondered how their conversation went from the movie to Terra. She hated Terra with a passion. She would never admit it but after she betrayed them and broke Beast boy's heart, she could never be forgiven. She was a traitor and always will be.

Raven put her hand on Beast boy's shoulder. He loosened up at her touch. His eyes were clenched and his fists were balled. When he opened his eyes to look at her, his gaze softened, and you could tell that his eyes were trying to hold back tears.

"Beast boy, I'm sorry." she said.

"For what? You didn't do anything." he replied.

"No, I'm sorry that…she broke your heart." she said, choosing similar words that Beast boy used when he was trying to console her after her encounter with Malchior. Beast boy smiled and blushed slightly, remembering where she was getting her words from. She had hugged him after he comforted her after Malchior.

Before Raven could react he had sprung at her and gave her a tight hug. Raven was surprised but quickly realized that's what Beast boy needed was to be comforted. She wrapped her arms around him in return and took in his scent. His musky, wild aroma.

"Thanks for understanding Rae." he whispered, smiling into her shoulder.

"I'm the only one who does." Raven whispered back.

With that, Beast boy broke the hug and smiled at her warmly, he then chuckled and started the walk that neither were aware of that they stopped. Raven walked beside the still smiling Beast boy.

"You know, what is it about you Raven?" he asked her. Raven blushed slightly from this odd question.

"What?" she asked innocently. Beast boy chuckled again.

"You're really easy to talk to. First I confess my bad childhood, then I deal with my feelings for Terra again. You got me under mind control Rae?" he joked. Raven smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah that's it. I'm not a talker Beast boy, I'm a listener. That's probably why it's so easy to tell me about your problems, because I won't interrupt or judge. I'll listen and help." she said. Beast boy smiled at her warmly.

"You know I know you said you're not a talker, but if you ever need or want to talk about anything, I'm only down the hall." he said. Raven smiled slightly.

"Thanks Beast boy. I appreciate it." she said. Beast boy glanced at his watch and his eyes widened.

"Wow, the movie's going to be starting in five minutes." he said. Raven looked at him curiously.

"Are you sure? That didn't feel like an hour." she said.

"Yeah I even checked twice. The movies on in fiv--four minutes." he said.

"Well then I suppose it was pretty good that the theater's right there." Raven pointed out. Sure enough, they had been walking through the park for so long that they had actually walked to the theater.

"Okay then let's go before we miss the movie." he said and the two walked straight for the theater.

--

"Hey do you want anything?" Beast boy whispered. They were inside the theater and the previews were currently playing. Raven shook her head in response to Beast boy's question.

"No I'm okay." she replied. Beast boy frowned.

"Yeah now, but trust me you're going to want something later." he said, Raven looked at him.

"I don't want anything. If you want something be my guest." she whispered. Beast boy rolled his eyes.

"I'll get you a water and some popcorn for the both of us." he said.

"Whatever." Raven rolled her eyes. She really didn't care about movie snacks or where the seats were. They sat in the very back row where no one else was, as Raven watched Beast boy walk down the steps, she couldn't help but think that it was actually sweet of him to think about her and asked her if she wanted anything and got something anyway. She was however, slightly surprised that he wasn't going to make her drink soda. She was even more surprised when she saw him coming back up the stairs with popcorn, a soda for him and a bottle of water. She was sure that he'd get several boxes of candy or overdo it on butter and salt for the popcorn but no, he actually bought what he said he was going to buy.

He handed Raven her water bottle and she smiled and took it. She set it in the cup holder for later as Beast boy did the same with his soda and he set the popcorn on his left leg so that if Raven wanted any she could have some. He looked like he was about to say something but the movie titles began to fly across the screen so he closed his mouth and paid attention to the movie.

--

"That was…a really good movie." Beast boy commented as they walked out of the dark theater and into he sun. Both he and Raven squinted their eyes at the brightness momentarily. It was also warm outside but it wasn't the warm weather that was causing the tint in their cheeks.

During the end of the movie Raven decided that it would be alright to have some popcorn. Beast boy was obviously happy about this due to the huge grin on his face that he could do something right. However, at one point they both reached at the same time and they did the classic popcorn hand touch. Raven blushed wildly for some reason and hid her face, though it was hard to tell in such a dark room. Beast boy flushed crimson as well and abandoned the popcorn for the rest of the movie.

"Yes, it was pretty good." Raven said in response to Beast boy's earlier question. She looked up at him and wondered where he'd take her next. Beast boy looked at his watch, it was about noon.

"Lunch?" he asked. Raven thought and nodded. Though she wasn't too thrilled about going out to lunch anywhere. Even their pizza place was always packed around this time and she hated crowds.

As if reading her thoughts…

"Don't worry Rae, I've got something planned and I know you're going to like it. I know you don't like a lot of people so. I made lunch, Just meet me by the boardwalk and I'll be back in a little bit. K? I'll be right back." he said, and with that he immediately ran behind a tree and away from the crowd and transformed into a flacon, holding his holographic ring in his beak.

Raven couldn't even ask or say something before he took off. She looked at the sky suspiciously before walking towards the boardwalk to wait for Beast boy.

--

It didn't take long. After about ten minutes Raven was at the boardwalk and so was Beast boy, holding a blanket and a picnic basket. Raven quirked her eyebrow.

"A picnic?" she asked.

"On the beach." he finished.

"hmmm…a walk through the park, movie, a picnic. If I didn't know any better I'd say you were taking me on a date." Raven smirked. Beast boy didn't answer right away.

"You wish." he chuckled, cocking his eyebrows. Raven smiled at him doubtfully. She caught the pause before.

"Malady." Beast boy said, offering his arm to her. Raven rolled her eyes but took it. Beast boy smiled his stud-like grin.

'_Oh yeah, she digs me.' _he purposefully thought.

'_I heard that.' _Raven said telepathically

'_That was the point.' _Beast boy thought back, cocking his eyebrows.

"Just pick a spot to sit down." Raven said aloud, rolling her eyes. Beast boy chuckled and set the basket down on the sand.

"How about here?" he said this more as a statement than a question. Raven didn't answer as Beast boy began to lay the blanket down on the sand and put four rocks in the corners to keep it down. Raven took a seat and waited for Beast boy to unpack the basket.

He took out a thermos and two sandwiches that looked to be tofu burgers. Raven raised her eyebrow as he took out two glass mugs. She looked at him curiously and he flushed slightly.

"Okay don't be mad…I kinda went into your herbal tea cabinet and made you this. I know for you it's been like forever since you had your tea so…here you go. And I'll only have some if your okay with it." he added as an afterthought. It was a known fact that Raven's herbal tea was off limits, much like Robin's coffee was most of the time. Beast boy reached into the basket and took out another sandwich.

"Here, if you don't like the tofu one, I made a turkey sandwich for you." he said, handing it to her. She took it and looked at him even more confused and curious than before.

"Beast boy…you made a meat sandwich for _me_?" she said slightly guilty that she had inadvertently made him go against his beliefs.

"Yeah, it's not like I ate it." he said in a _'duh' _tone "Raven don't worry, I just wanted to make this a good day for you. I know I'm not exactly your favorite person to be stuck hanging out with for a day so…I want you to have fun." he said. Raven was surprised at how genuine he was being.

"Beast boy, true you do get on my nerves from time to time," she smiled, he chuckled "But trust me. I'm having a great time today. And I've also learned that you can be mature when you want to and I won't even know about it. Reading those books for example." she said. Beast boy rolled his eyes.

"I thought you were already over that." he said, taking one of the tofu burgers and taking a bite out of it.

"I am, but that doesn't mean it still isn't shocking." she said. Pouring two mugs of herbal tea and handing one to Beast boy. He swallowed and looked at her to be sure.

"You sure Rae?" he asked, taking the mug. She nodded her head.

"Yes, I tried your tofu, now it's your turn." she smirked.

"Oh Ha Ha, very funny. You didn't poison this did you?" he said jokingly. Raven rolled her eyes as she took a sip of her own tea and grabbed a tofu burger as well.

Beast boy noticed this and smiled. He looked down at the herbal tea again and took a sip. It was…really good. It wasn't the kind of good that you want to finish the whole thing in two seconds, it was the kind of good that you want to drink it slowly and take in every flavor and feel every sense it triggers. He felt the warm liquid slide down his throat and enliven his every sense his sense of smell, touch, and taste. It wasn't until he heard Raven cough audibly did he realize that his eyes were closed. He opened them quickly and saw Raven smirking at him and several bites taken out of her tofu burger.

"Thought you'd never wake up." she said. Sipping her tea again. Beast boy flushed and put the mug down.

"So that's what I interrupt every time your meditating or drinking your tea?" he asked. Raven nodded.

"I'm really really really sorry Rae. I had no idea." he said. Raven smiled at him.

"So you like it?" she asked.

"Like it? Are you kidding I love it! It's so…so…"

"calming?" she asked. Beast boy looked at her and nodded.

"Yeah, calming. And it's not like, drop dead tired kind of calming it's just…calming!" he said, for lack of a better word. Raven rolled her eyes.

"So what about the tofu?" he asked, cocking his eyebrow.

"It's hard to believe, but it actually tastes like a hamburger. Except for the texture of course." she stated.

"I know. That's one thing that I like about tofu." he said. Raven swallowed and looked at him curiously.

"So, you like the taste of meat?" she asked. Beast boy's eyes widened.

"Of Course not! I Would NEVER eat an innocent animal!!" he practically shouted.

"No, no I know you wouldn't. But you said you like the TASTE of meat. Do you?" she asked. Beast boy looked down, he looked as if he were to admit he'd done a horrible crime.

"Yeah. I hate to admit it but it's the truth." he said. A thought then occurred to Raven.

"When you turn into animals, do you take on whatever instinctual adaptations they have?" she asked. She half expected Beast boy to not know what she said but he answered with no problem.

"Yeah, that's why…I ate the snake when I turned into a mongoose remember? When I was little." he said. Raven nodded, remembering their conversation the previous day.

"Then I have another question. When you turn into carnivores, how do you resist meat?" she asked. Beast boy didn't answer for a while. 7 whole seconds went by before he answered.

"It's very hard." he said at last. Raven knew that another question wouldn't be wise. She and Beast boy continued eating until Beast boy turned to Raven and asked her a surprising question.

"Does it hurt?" he asked. Raven looked at him confused.

"What?" she asked.

"When you heal us, does it hurt?" he asked her again. Raven's eyes widened slightly. She looked down to avoid eye contact.

"No, but it does weaken me greatly. It doesn't exactly hurt though, but it numbs my head if I do it for too long and I can feel a stinging in my hands." she explained. Beast by took all this in and looked at the ground again.

"Raven if it really does that to you, then why do you heal us even when we're only bruised?" he asked, referring to a time when she healed him for a minor injury. Raven looked up at him.

"Because I was destined to destroy the world remember. My whole purpose was to end the life of mortals. You guys are my friends. Even if I was supposed to kill you one day. I had to at least heal every injury you obtained, and hope that that would somehow make up for…" she stopped. She couldn't continue. Too many bad memories.

Beast boy reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. She turned to him and looked into his eyes. They were the same forest green orbs she came to know, even behind the foggy hologram. They were full of sincerity and sympathy. She involuntarily gave him a half smile and he smiled back at her.

"It looks like we're finished here." he said. He placed his empty mug inside the basket as well as Raven's and the blanket as well. He smiled nervously at Raven.

"Uh, Raven? I was wondering, could you…"

"No problem." she said, reading his thoughts. She chanted her mantra and the basket was instantly engulfed with black energy an transported back to titans tower. Raven smiled at him.

"Thanks Rae." he said.

"And exactly what would you have done if I said no?" she asked crassly. Beast boy shrugged.

"Groveled and begged till you said yes?" he answered. Raven rolled her eyes and stood up, she dusted away the sand on her legs. And turned to him expectantly.

"So what are you planning next?" she asked. Beast boy checked his watch and glanced behind her.

"The boardwalk's having a fair today. Maybe we could hang out there and don't worry, I won't push you to go on a roller coaster…much." he joked. Raven rolled her eyes and playfully punched his shoulder. He faked a cringe and chuckled.

"So does that sound good to you?" he asked. Raven pondered this and nodded.

"Yeah it sounds fine to me." she said. The two began their way to the boardwalk, which wasn't far away. The sounds of the people were barely heard from where they stood considering that there weren't many there. It began to get crowded once kids were home from school, parents were home from work and families finished dinner.

"And I'll betcha I can win you another prize." she beamed. Raven rolled her eyes.

"One that _isn't _one of the most annoying birds on the planet." she said sarcastically. Beast boy faked a hurt expression.

"That chicken took two whole tokens!" he joked. Raven rolled her eyes again.

"Other than that what are we going to do? I'm not a roller coaster person." she said.

"You'll see." Beast boy said slyly. He walked faster to the boardwalk while Raven tried to keep up.

'_What's he thinking?' _Raven thought


	7. A Satisfying Result

"…_**and back to our regularly scheduled programming…" **_click

"…_**tired of those nasty zits…" **_click

"…_**and Farve scores! The Jets win the game…" **_click

"…_**Lance, will you ever forgive me…" **_click

Cyborg flipped from channel to channel absent mindedly. He was to distracted by other things. One of which was he just got Robin to admit that he liked Starfire and now the team leader was going over how he was going to approach her. He wasn't doing anything but that's what drove Cyborg crazy! He was so used to a jumpy green boy next to him or a giddy alien near. Robin was as still as a statue, you couldn't even tell he was breathing. He looked out the window every twenty minutes like clockwork and just stare for ten minutes then go back to staring at the floor.

"Okay man what gives?" Cyborg said. Who knew that doing absolutely nothing could annoy someone so much! Robin looked up at his confused friend.

"What? I'm trying to figure when the right time is to talk to Starfire." he answered simply. He returned to staring at the floor when Cyborg interrupted him yet again.

"Well cut it out okay, just seeing you doing nothing out of the corner of my eyes is irritating. Give yourself a break already." he said. Robin rolled his eyes (though all you could see was a slight movement of his mask) and nodded.

"Fine, then what do you suggest talking about then?" he asked. Cyborg gave him a sly grin.

"Why don't we…"

"And if you say spy on Raven and Beast boy, I'm going to give you extra training all week." he said. Cyborg frowned and leaned back in his seat.

"You really think he's going to do it?" he asked, once his pouting was finished. Robin shrugged.

"I don't know. I still can't believe that he likes Raven." he said. It was Cyborg's turn to look confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked

"I mean that Raven just doesn't seem to be his type. He's energetic, happy, cheerful and annoying and she's…dark, placid, reclusive, and misunderstood." he said. Cyborg cocked his eyebrow.

"That sounds a lot like a certain cheerful, energetic alien and a reclusive, misunderstood leader I know." he said slyly. Robin gave him a look.

"look man, haven't you ever heard of opposites attract? You and Star are opposites and you're gaga over her." Robin threw a threatening glare his way. Cyborg smiled nervously "I can't believe you didn't see it man. BB's been flirting with her since they first met!" he said, like it was obvious.

"Well actually I haven't seen it." he said matter-of-factly. Cyborg shrugged.

"I suppose. Though I do recall Raven hugging Beast boy at one time." he said casually. Robins head snapped at him.

"What? When?" he practically stuttered.

"Remember that weirdo dragon she liked?" he asked. Robin nodded.

"Well, BB went and paid her a little visit afterward. I saw the whole thing. I never saw him like that before, he was being _deep_. Anyway it must've won Raven cause she came out of her room and clung on to him." he said. Robin was in mild shock the whole time.

"Wow, heh and I thought I was the one she first hugged." he joked, but Cyborg's face darkened.

"You don't…like her too do you?" he asked. Robin shuddered.

"She's like my sister, we're close but we're close like twins. Don't ever think that again." he said in disgust. Cyborg sighed in relief.

"Good, wouldn't want Star to get jealous." he chuckled. Robin groaned.

"You had to remind me of her didn't you?" he said, worried about how he was going to tell her how he felt. He was never good at that.

"Dawg just relax. Just take her someplace nice like a restaurant or something and tell her. You know she loves to get dressed up." he said. Robin considered this then flashed him a smile.

"That's not a bad idea. Thanks Cyborg." Robin said hurriedly as he jumped off the couch and ran out the door. Cyborg just shook his head and turned the TV back on.

"All in a days work for cupid." he said to himself

--

"Pick a prize any prize."

Beast boy glanced to the side where Raven stood. She cocked her eyebrow at him but he just smiled back at her.

"How about that one." he said to the man in charge of the bottle ring toss booth. The man handed Beast boy a stuffed animal and he took it smugly.

"Told you I'd win you a prize." he said to Raven. Raven raised her eyebrows at the oversized stuffed animal, it was…a raven. Beast boy handed it to her and she accepted it awed.

"Thank you Beast boy" was all she could say. Beast boy smiled at her proudly.

"Better than the giant chicken huh?" he chuckled. Raven smiled in response.

"I have to say…" she started "…this day has been…really nice." she admitted. Beast boy beamed at her. They walked to the edge of the pier and sat on the edge.

"Really? You mean this hasn't been totally painful for you? I thought you'd claw me to death when I took you on that roller coaster." he joked. Then something happened. Something he swore he'd never see or hear again. He heard the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard. He heard Raven laugh…at HIS joke, for the second time that week.

"H-hey. I made you laugh again." he said, his lips stretching to an ear to ear grin Raven stopped her laughing and looked at him, she smiled softly.

"Yes you did. That's twice." she said. Beast boy beamed.

"Okay now I have to know. In all seriousness, no lying or gloating, do you think I'm funny?" That was the dreaded question that Raven would never have answered yes to in a million years. That was a fact. But what came out of her mouth completely shocked her, possibly more than Beast boy.

"Yes." she said. Her smile disappeared instantly and her face was covered in a rosy blush. Saying that she thought Beast boy was funny was the equivalent of saying "I Love You", but this unwritten meaning was only understood by said titans.

Beast boy stared at her flustered face in shock. He was the happiest man on earth. At this moment he couldn't stop the blush on his cheeks. He flushed so deep that his green skin and the peach skin from his hologram fused together to form an odd colored blush. When his head was somewhat clear he smiled and did something that was forbidden in Raven's _'Unwritten Rules of Raven' _, he hugged her…tightly.

Raven was surprised by the embrace and as soon as she felt the warmth of his body radiating off of him her pinkish tint spread throughout her face and deepened to a dark crimson. Her heart felt like it was going to flat line, she had to concentrate to keep her head from spinning and to keep her breathing regular. She was relieved, yet somewhat saddened when Beast boy broke the hug.

"Thanks Rae" he said, though he looked completely calm and happy. Raven could sense some nervousness brewing inside him.

'_This is it.' _he thought.

'_It's now, don't screw it up.' _he said. Beast boy knew exactly the words that he wanted to say but he couldn't bring himself to say them.

'_Just do it!' _his mind screamed.

'_What are you waiting for! Ask her!' _he thought, he opened his mouth but hesitated.

'_NOW!'_

"Raven?" Beast boy said. Raven blinked.

"Yes?" she said in return. He couldn't tell but he had a feeling that she knew what he was about to ask.

"Do you want to go on the Ferris wheel?" he asked. _'STUPID!' _his mind scolded. Raven quirked her eyebrow.

"Okay, that sounds good to me." she said. Beast boy could swear he heard a hint of disappointment but with Raven it was always hard to tell.

"Okay, c'mon let's go." he said, he stood up and took her hand without asking. Both Raven and Beast boy felt something that was similar to a spark of electricity. It wasn't static electricity s much as it really was…energy. Sparkling energy. Raven and Beast boy's faces grew red as Beast boy pulled on her arm and hoisted her up.

"er…let's go." Raven said after a minute of silence. They both walked awkwardly and hurriedly to the Ferris wheel.

After about a minute or two of waiting in line, they entered the car and waited for the ride to start. They started and stopped every cart so that someone could get on and off. Finally, after what seemed like ages, the wheel began to spin in a continuous circle. Raven and Beast boy sat awkwardly next to each other, refusing to look at each other, for fear that they would do something they would regret. Beast boy knew that this had to be the time. While they're still on the Ferris wheel, he had to ask what could be the most important question he was going to ask. The wheel stopped spinning, as always they were checking the machine and delaying everyone's ride. Raven and Beast boy were lucky enough to end up looking out at the ocean and stars. Night had fallen rather quickly and the sky was alight with stars. Beast boy knew that it was now or never, there was no second chance.

"It's beautiful tonight." he said randomly to start up a conversation. Raven looked at him oddly.

"Yes it is. It's very beautiful." she said, gazing out over the ocean again. Beast boy turned to look at her.

"Yeah, beautiful." he said softly, though he was sure Raven heard him. She felt someone's eyes on her and she turned to Beast boy. Normally Beast boy would look away quickly and pretend he was never staring at her, but not this time. He found her eyes and attached his to hers. She could not break eye contact.

'_now' _Beast boy's mind echoed.

"Raven?" he said. She did not answer, for she knew that he did not say her name as a question

"No one's here, I would rather say this to YOU." he said, Raven quirked her eyebrow. Beast boy took her hand and pulled off her holographic ring, her alias Rachel Roth was no more. There sat Raven, in all her beauty. Her soft violet hair blowing in the breeze, carrying a soft scent of sage and leather. Beast boy could get drunk off that scent. He pulled off his own holographic ring and looked her in the eyes again. Her deep, violet eyes.

"Raven, will you go out with me?" he asked. Raven's eyes widened, her blood rushed to her face and she tried to hide herself form view, by letting her violet hair fall like a curtain between them. She was in shock. She had a feeling that he was going to ask her that but there was no possible way she could have been sure. Beast boy gently brushed her hair back behind her ear. She looked at him and he smiled at her.

"You don't have to give me an answer if you don't want to." he said smiling, though his voice held a bit of disappointment.

"yes." she whispered. Beast boy looked down.

"I know." he said, thinking that she meant that she won't give him an answer right away.

"No I mean, yes Beast boy. I would like to go out with you." she said, desperate to get her point across. Beast boy looked at her surprised.

"Raven make sure that you mean what you said. I don't want you to feel like you have to. I don't ever want to force you." he said. Raven shook her head and smiled.

"No Beast boy. I'm positive. This is what I want. I want to go out with you." she said. And as a way to tell him (and herself a little bit) that she was sure, she leaned closer to him. Beast boy felt his heart skip a beat as she planted a kiss on his cheek. Raven felt her heart stop completely when his skin met her lips. She thought that for that moment, she could feel everything that he was feeling. Every emotion, every thought, every heartbeat.

Suddenly they heard the sound of cloth being torn. Raven and Beast boy swiftly turned around in time to see a poor stuffed raven's head being exploded by dark energy. Raven's eyes froze with fear, she desperately searched her neck to make sure that she hadn't lost the necklace somehow. When she found it her fear turned to confusion. She then smiled and held the pendant tightly in her hand. Beast boy was shocked as well and was thinking the same thing. He turned to Raven in worry that the necklace didn't work anymore but when he saw her smiling he was incredibly confused.

"What? Are you okay?" he asked. Raven smiled at him.

"You made me feel too much, even with the necklace I have limits, but that's to be expected." she explained. Beast boy sighed in relief, he caught her eyes again and this time neither of them was thinking anything but each other. They leaned forward painfully slow. They began to slowly close the gap between them, their lips centimeters apart. They closed their eyes, able to taste each other's breath.

SSSCREEEEEE!!

The Ferris wheel jolted to life and the two were snapped out of their moment. Beast boy then remembered the holographic rings and gave Raven hers. She put it on before anyone at the fair saw them as Teen Titans. Once the cart had descended, they got out of it awkwardly and looked in opposite directions. Their _"almost" _kiss, replaying in their minds.

"So, when's our first date?" Raven asked to break the tension, which was strange cause she was not normally the one to do that. Beast boy was snapped out of his trance and his head snapped to her. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Well I had one idea of somewhere where we could go tonight but I know you wouldn't like it." he said.

"What is it?" she asked, fearing it was a fancy restaurant.

"Well, it's this dance club. Not many people go there cause it's on the darker side of town, but I know dancing's not your thing but, if your willing to try new things…" he said. Raven raised her eyebrow.

"You mean like the one Blackfire took us to?" she asked. Beast boy nodded. She shrugged.

"That doesn't sound too bad to me." she smiled. Beast boy beamed. Then why don't we go home and change, do you have anything to wear." he asked. Raven stopped in her tracks as Starfire's words rang through her head.

"_Perhaps you will wear it on a date…Perhaps you will wear it on a date…Perhaps you will wear it on a date…Perhaps you will wear it on a date."_

Raven smiled to herself _'okay albeit' _she thought.

"Actually, I do have something." she said, Beast boy raised his eyebrow.

"Really?" he asked, somewhat surprised. Raven just rolled her eyes and engulfed the two of them in a black aura.

The black raven shaped aura took flight to titans tower, it flew through the roof and into the hallway that contained the two titans rooms. Raven let down her aura and took off her ring.

"I'll go change. You'll do the same?" she assumed. Beast boy merely nodded his head. He never was going to get used to transportation.

--

Beast boy stepped out of his room and looked in Raven's direction. She wasn't ready yet so he leaned against his door. He wore a maroon flannel shirt with a loose tie and black pants. He had his holographic ring off for the moment. He knew he didn't need it yet and it was always annoying to have it on his finger, it was so heavy he could feel it slide on his finger and he had to constantly make sure that it didn't fall off. He needed to wait only a few more minutes before he heard Raven's door.

"Okay, you r-rea…whoa." Beast boy gaped. He had never Raven wear anything like that in his life. She looked amazing!

Raven blushed mildly at his reaction to her wardrobe. She chose to wear the tank top with the wide strap and thin strap that showed her stomach, for tonight. Something in Beast boy's response told her he liked it.

"So I guess you like it?" she asked a little nervously. Beast boy smacked himself back to reality.

"Like it! Rae you look hot!" Beast boy instantly slapped a hand over his mouth at what he just said. Raven blushed vibrantly. She was flattered but at the same time nervous. She knew she could trust Beast boy with her life but…he's still a guy…with hormones. She just didn't want to find out that he liked her for the wrong reasons and leaving her to feel violated and betrayed. She did not want him to become a Malchior. Beast boy sensed this and he put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a comforting smile. She returned the smile with hope.

"Shall we go malady?" he asked, holding out his arm. Raven nodded and took it, blushing still. Beast boy was blushing mildly as well.

"Oh, wait. I almost forgot." he said, he dashed inside his room quickly and came back out with something behind his back. Raven raised her eyebrow and was about to ask, when Beast boy showed her a beautiful white rose.

"Beast boy." she gasped, he smiled "It's beautiful." she said. Beast boy smiled even wider.

"C'mon Rae. I've got class. I know what to give a girl on the first date." he said. Raven smiled and snapped the stem in half. Beast boy gaped and felt a sharp pain in his chest but it quickly dissolved as he saw that she was merely shortening the stem so she could put it in her hair. Beast boy smiled, warmly.

"You look beautiful." he said as he led her down the hall once more. Raven blushed and turned to the side, she didn't answer. Beast boy smiled at her beautiful being. He couldn't keep his eyes off her. It was this that caused him to bump his elbow into the wall.

"ow!" he remarked. Raven put her hands on his arm and a bluish glow surrounded her hands. Beast boy gripped her hands tightly, causing the glow to fade and for Raven to look at him strangely. Beast boy had a stern look on his face.

"No. It's my fault, I wasn't watching where I was going." he said.

"That's because you were too busy watching me." she retorted under her breath, but Beast boy's sensitive ears picked this up and he flushed even deeper.

"Uh…right well…don't worry about it Rae. It's not even gonna bruise." he said, Raven looked at him disbelievingly.

"You aren't going to let me heal you at all anymore are you?" she asked. Beast boy shook his head.

"Only if it's major, I'll let you heal me if you want. But if I pull a muscle or get a bruise anymore no." he said.

"And this is all because you're worried about me?" she asked. Beast boy nodded "I've been okay with healing you guys for the past years, I'll still be okay with healing you now." she assured.

"No." he said surprisingly stern "I'll keep it a secret that healing us hurts you a bit but if I would have known earlier, I would never have let you heal me at all. The end of the world is over Raven. You don't need to make up for anything." he said, sweetly. "And I don't care how many times we argue about this I'm not gonna let you heal me." he said. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Where are we going exactly, I can teleport us there if you tell me where it is." she said. Beast boy shook his head.

"Nah, we're taking my wheels this time." he said smugly. Raven turned to him sharply.

"Please do NOT tell me you got that ridiculous moped." she scoffed

"Nah, I'm over those, I got the next best thing." he replied. He pressed the garage door button and walked to his ride while Raven was wondering how she could have not noticed that they were going to the garage this whole time.

"I just hope you're okay with it." he said as he patted the seat of his forest green, motorcycle. He strapped a helmet to his head and gave Raven hers. He looked like he was trying to remember something then his face lit up. He pulled two rings out of his pockets and gave one to Raven. As soon as he put his holographic ring back on, he was the blonde haired blue eyed Garfield Logan once again. Raven placed hers on her finger as well and Rachel Roth reappeared.

"Are you sure you know how to drive this?" she asked, as she put on her helmet. Beast boy laughed.

"Trust me. Cyborg made sure I was motorcycle material before he let me share the garage with his "baby" over there." he said, pointing to the T-Car. Raven chuckled as well.

"Just buckle in and, let me know if you're uncomfortable." he said. Raven nodded, she got on the cycle as it roared to life. It startled her so much that her hands immediately went to Beast boy's waist. They both blushed furiously as Beast boy pulled out of titans tower and took the bridge that was between the tower and the mainland. Raven clung to Beast boy the whole time. He tried to ignore it and watch the road but it was hard. She was so close to him and her fragrance danced in his nose. With his enhanced senses he could feel her heart beating at twice the speed of light, as his own heart matched that pace.

Raven was slightly worried about Beast boy driving. He wasn't reckless, he was just speedy. Or maybe she just wasn't used to being on a motorcycle and he really was going only the 40 miles that law insisted. She held on to him tight, like if she didn't let go she not only would be thrown off the speeding vehicle, but she would never see Beast boy again. Her worries were calmed when she rested her head on his back and took in his musky scent. There could possibly be no other like it in the world.

Before she knew it the cycle was slowing down and she lifted her head. They were in a maze of abandoned warehouses. Raven could not understand how Beast boy could find his way around so easily, then she heard it. The sound of drumming dance music. Beast boy's ears were more sensitive so he must have been able to follow it with ease. Straight ahead Raven saw a huge warehouse, like the one Blackfire had taken them all to with blue, green, yellow, and red lights dancing in the high windows.

Beast boy parked the motorcycle near the warehouse and dismounted it. He took of his helmet and ran a hand through his messy blonde hair. Raven took off her helmet and noticed that the flower was slightly crushed, she mumbled a few magic words and a glow surrounded the flower as it suddenly returned to the way it was. Beast boy noticed this and pointed to the flower questioningly.

"I put a spell on it. It's preserved so it won't get crushed or die. It'll last for as long as the spell." she answered.

"And how long is the spell?" he asked.

"Years." she relied simply. Beast boy beamed at her, he felt extremely flattered that she was going to preserve that flower for years to come.

The two rounded the corner and headed for the door of the club, which was guarded by a tough bouncer. Raven was sure they were never going to get in, until the bouncer noticed Beast boy and smiled widely.

"Yo Garfield ma man! How you been blondie?" he asked, Beast boy smiled nervously at the name.

"Not much, just came here on a date." he said. The bouncer just looked at him oddly.

"I thought you told me you were going to ask out that other girl?" he said, Beast boy's eyes widened as well as Raven's. A hurt expression crossed her face and she suddenly wanted nothing more than to go home. She was surprised however that Beast boy was laughing.

"What other girl?" he said, he winked at Raven though she didn't know what that meant…until the bouncer replied.

"You know that Teen Titan girl Raven." he said. Raven smirked at Beast boy.

"Really?" she said, sounding offended, though it didn't fool Beast boy. He only quirked his eyebrow at her "And what does Garfield say about her?" she asked. Beast boy grew nervous.

"Well, just that she's the most beautiful girl he's ever seen uhm…her laugh's like his lullaby…even her glare is beautiful…and a bunch of other mushy stuff. Oh! And didn't you say that you might lo--"

"OKAY, that's enough. Gotta seize the night while it's still young, great talking to you dude, bye!" Beast boy said, quickly as he pulled Raven's arm through the door. Raven was slightly shocked by his reaction but she was almost certain she knew what the bouncer was about to say.

"Not very bright is he." Raven commented, trying to hide a smile.

"Tell me about it. Hey, do you want anything?" Beast boy asked, a light tint in his cheeks as he pointed over to the bar on the side of the room. Raven looked at him strangely.

"Beast boy we're underage. I'm NOT drinking." she said sternly, offended by the thought. Beast boy chuckled.

"They have virgin margaritas Rae. And if you don't want that I'll just get you an iced tea or water or something." he shrugged. Raven nodded.

"Just water then, thanks." she said. Beast boy smiled.

"No prob. I'll be right back." he said, dashing in the opposite direction. Raven studied the warehouse.

It was nothing like the club that Blackfire took them to. This place was completely…vamped, for lack of a better word. If you looked up high enough, you could see the broken glass windows that resembled an actual warehouse but everything else looked like they were in a lounge! Obviously someone had bought this place for precisely this reason. There were booths that sat on the edges of the huge building, a bar that was to their left, an enormous dance floor packed with people, blinding flashing lights and to top it all off, there was a stage against the back wall where live bands could play. There was currently no one there however and the music was playing through speakers. It was only a moment before Beast boy stumbled over with their drinks. Two waters, go figure. Raven took her water gratefully and gulped it down, suddenly aware of how thirsty she was. Beast boy did the same, his throat incredibly dry. They both finished about the same time and soundlessly wandered to an empty booth.

Once they found one they sat down and stared at the table in an awkward silence. Both were suddenly aware that they were on a date…with each other. Beast boy fiddled with his thumbs, awkwardly while Raven sat perfectly still. Beast boy looked up at her and took a deep breath.

'_Okay, just relax. Use the old Beast boy charm.' _he thought.

'_Even though it hasn't worked on any girl in this entire city.' _he countered in his mind. He looked at Raven again who was staring intently at her water bottle. He took this chance to really study her. He saw the way the dance lights flashed brightly and gave her black hair a certain glow each time they alternated colors. Though he wasn't satisfied with this girl sitting before him…not at all. This was Rachel Roth, black hair, peach skin, blue streaks, and…not Raven. This girl was a complete stranger, just as Garfield must be a complete stranger to her. He wished so much for no one else to be here so they could take off their holographic rings and be themselves. He wanted to see the real Raven, he knew she was right here underneath this mask or Rachel, but he felt like he hadn't seen Raven in years though it's only been a day. Raven sensed someone staring at her and she looked up at him and raised her eyebrow.

"What?" she asked. Beast boy blushed.

"Nothing, nothing," he said quickly. He had to think of an excuse fast "it's just that necklace looks really great on you." he said, which was very truthful. Raven looked down and smiled, her hand subconsciously wandering to the necklace.

"Yes, I…really love it. It's done more than look nice Be -- Garfield!" she caught herself "It's given me so much more than that and I don't know how to thank you." she said, meaningfully. Beast boy rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Well, you could pay me back by letting me dance with you." he said. Raven's smile faltered.

"Only if you want to!" he added quickly "I don't want to make you something you don't wanna do."

Raven looked at the other people on the floor. She grimaced at the erotic display of lust being shown so publicly. She was very nervous that that's what Beast boy intended to do. Beast boy followed her gaze to the sea of people. He saw their vulgar dance moves and his face flushed instantly, realizing why Raven was so hesitant.

"N-no! No, no Raven. I don't mean dance like _that_!" he said in disgust. "I would never do anything so early and I know you're nervous about this, I am too." he said

"I just want to know if you would like to dance with me…with some distance between us of course." he said. He stood up and held out his hand.

Raven looked him in the eyes and she realized that he would stand like that all night if he had to. He would give her an eternity to think about what she wanted to do and he would wait. She saw nothing but trust in his eyes. Trust that had taken over five years to build. And not once through out those five years had Beast by lost a fraction of her trust. It remained strong and sturdy. He respected her and cared about her greatly and he was willing to do anything to strengthen that trust. He awaited patiently for her answer…too patiently for Beast boy. Raven knew that standing there must be strenuous for him. She smiled and took his hand. Beast boy frowned.

"Only if you want to Raven." he said softly. Raven looked at him again and nodded sharply, indicating that she was willing to trust him if he was willing to sustain it. Beast boy smiled and led her to the dance floor.

As the first song started up, Raven and Beast boy stood in front of each other, and swayed to get a hold of the beat. Raven was having some difficulty being confident enough to dance around all those people so she couldn't help but think about her movements and made sure that they were very subtle. Beast boy however was able to pick up on the music and he began to sway his hips loosely and his arms were flying about at his sides. He noticed Raven having trouble and he stopped dancing for the moment to help her out.

"_Like a gift from the heavens it was easy to tell_

_It was love from above that could save me from hell_

_She had fire in her soul it was easy to see_

_How the devil himself could be pulled out of me…"_

"Rachel!" he shouted over the crowd. Raven looked up at him questioningly.

"Try this." he said. He took her arms and moved them around "Don't think about anything. Let the music move you. If you think then it'll completely mess with your dancing." he said.

"So I take it you're a pro." she joked. Beast boy realized she was relating to his thinking level…like always. Beast boy rolled his eyes humorlessly.

"Just trust me on this! Do what I do!" he shouted. He moved her arms again and felt the beat. He swayed his hips and moved Raven's arms loosely. Raven tried but she couldn't get a feel of it. Beast boy smiled.

"Relax! Loosen up! Think of it as meditation!" he said as he began to dance again. Raven didn't argue.

"…_There were drums in the air as she started to dance_

_Every soul in the room keeping time with their hands…"_

Raven closed her eyes and moved her legs to the rhythm and swayed her hips to the beat. She released the tension in her arms and left them alone. When she opened her eyes she was surprised to see that she was dancing quite smoothly, well not dancing as much as…gliding. Her movements were so fluid that she could have been water in human form. She realized that she had failed to notice her limbs moving out of her will, the music coursing through her veins.

"…_And we sang ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And the voices rang like the angels' sing_

_Singing ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And we danced on into the night…"_

Beast boy was dancing as well with his eyes closed, when he opened his eyes his jaw dropped completely. Raven was moving so gracefully and fluidly, it was hard to believe that this was the robotic girl he had to teach dancing 101 to a few minutes ago. He was hypnotized by her, he couldn't stop staring. Every twist, every turn, every step she took was exercised with such rhythm. She looked like a hypnotic siren, and he was the unfortunate sailor to become entranced by her dance.

"…_Like a piece to the puzzle that falls into place_

_You could tell how we felt from the look on our faces…"_

He moved closer to her. She could smell his familiar musky scent as he approached, she opened her eyes as they moved in sync with not only the music…but each other. They began to stare deeply into each other's eyes. Not aware of the people that were stopping to watch them. They began to circle each other in a sort of courtship, their eyes glimmering with excitement.

"…_Spinning in circles with the moon in our eyes_

_No room left to move in between you and I_

_We forgot where we were and we lost track of time_

_We sang to the wind as we danced through the night_

_And we sang ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And the voices rang like the angels' sing_

_Singing ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And we danced on into the night…"_

Beast boy took a hold of Raven's hand and he began twirling her around fast but also gently. She took to immediately letting him spin her around as they let their bodies sway where they may and not worry what the many people who stopped to watch, are thinking. Beast boy suddenly pulled Raven closer to him, almost and inch away from his face before picking her up and throwing her across the room. She landed stealthily on her feet and flipped backwards into his arms. It was like their limbs had minds of their own. People were staring at them in shock and awe.

Beast boy recognized Raven as the only person in the entire universe right now. Nothing mattered but him and her. He watched as their bodies moved separately as one and how freely they felt. He could hear his heart pumping in his ears, like a beating drum and Raven was pounding the hell out of it. He was amazed at how quickly Raven was able to pick this up. She was now virtually a pro at this, her tantalizing dance was enough to entrance him further into her eyes when they made contact. He could feel that sensual, exciting feeling of releasing all the intensity of the emotion they were both feeling though their rhythmic courtship.

"_Like a gift from the heavens it was easy to tell_

_It was love from above that could save me from hell_

_She had fire in her soul it was easy to see_

_How the devil himself could be pulled out of me_

_There were drums in the air as she started to dance_

_Every soul in the room keeping time with their hands_

_And we sang ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And the voices rang like the angels' sing_

_Singing ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And we danced on into the night_

_(And the voices rang like the angels' sing)_

_Singing ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_Ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_Singing ay-o-ay-o-ay-o-aye_

_And we danced on intoo the niiight."_

--

Raven slid off her holographic ring with relief. Wearing a heavy chunk of metal on your finger, not exactly your favorite fashion statement. Beast boy took off his bike helmet and removed his ring as well. He slipped the piece of metal into his pocket and shut the garage door of titans tower. Raven looked at him and smiled, this was one of the few times that day that she saw him as the Beast boy she has come to know and…well she didn't know about that yet.

Beast boy smiled his toothy grin that showed his sharp fangs. Raven smiled in return, she turned her back to him without a word and walked slowly out the door. Though she stopped dead in her tracks when she heard Beast boy comment on something that she completely forgot about.

"I thought you said you didn't get a tattoo with Star?" he asked. Raven's eyes widened and she bit her lip nervously. She could hear Beast boys footsteps behind her and her body stiffened when she heard them stop.

"I like it, it matches your necklace." he said. Though he said it in his normal voice, Raven could not help but sense of bit of seductiveness in it. His voice was so close to her. Her heart was beating faster than she ever thought it could and she had to struggle to keep her breath regular, though she wasn't feeling this way out of fear. She wanted nothing more than to turn around and stare into his forest green eyes.

Slowly she turned around and looked up to his smiling face. She smiled as well and lost herself in his eyes. Beast boy gazed deep into her eyes as well and found that he could not look away. Once again, their bodies were moving painfully slow. Raven hesitantly took one step forward and craned her neck upward. Beast boy moved his face closer to hers, closing the gap between their lips. Raven lids slowly descended and she readied herself for what was about to happen. She could feel his hot breath on her cheeks and she could already taste his breath on her tongue.

Beast boy stopped before their lips met. Raven noticed this and realized that he was making sure that this is what she wanted. Unspoken words were passed between them as Raven opened her eyes slightly and gazed into Beast boy's half-lidded grass green orbs. He searched her for any sign of hesitance, any sign that she wasn't ready to take this step, anything that would tell him to stop right now and back away. Though she wished he didn't have to.

'_What are you waiting for?' _Raven thought telepathically to him.

And that was all he needed as he crashed his lips with hers and encircled his arms around her in a tight embrace. Raven's eyes widened and her body stiffened from the shock but as soon as she felt the warmth of his body connecting to her through their lips, she closed her eyes and drew her arms around his neck, tangling her hand in his hair. His scent was intoxicating as the kiss was passionate but loving. The way Beast boy held her in his arms wasn't rugged and domineering, nor was it gentle and light. Her held her safely in his arms, as his lips pulsed against hers, making their first kiss one of the most erotic yet romantic moments of their lives. Beast boy regrettably withdrew his lips from hers for air.

Raven was just as happy to breath but also saddened that it had to end. Beast boy rested his forehead against hers, their chests moving rhythmically with their breaths. Raven gave him one of the most genuine smiles she'd ever given him. Beast boy's breath caught in his throat. There was that magical smile again. The one he'd come to obsess to get her to show over the years. He smiled in return and hugged her. Not a word was said between them, for not a word was needed to be said, as they walked up to the common room. Raven and Beast boy did nothing but smiled and stare at each other the entire way as they entwined their fingers together. Unfortunately this caused Beast boy run into the wall and tap the edge of it with the same arm he bumped earlier. He cringed and looked at Raven who was stifling a giggle.

"Still glad I didn't heal it?" she asked, Beast boy rolled his eyes.

"Yes, very." he said nudging her playfully. They opened the doors to the common room and stopped dead in their tracks. They both flushed a bit as they saw all three of their friends waiting for them. Cyborg had on a victorious smirk, Robin and Starfire were smiling as well. The only thing out of the ordinary was that Robin was dressed in a tux and Starfire wore a sparkling pink dress. Beast boy was about to ask when Cyborg spoke first.

"I made a bet with Robin so I need to know this. Did ya kiss her?" he asked. Raven blushed furiously and Beast boy flushed even deeper. Starfire giggled. The boys eventually told her about how Beast boy felt and she spilled what she knew about Raven.

"Dude that is so none of your business! And you made a bet with him!" he asked shocked. He then turned to Starfire "You told Starfire!" he practically shouted, more or less shocked rather than angry. Robin and Cyborg shrugged, still smirking.

"You told Robin and Cyborg!" Raven shouted just as shocked to Starfire. Starfire rubbed the back of her head nervously.

"Whoa look at the time!" Robin said glancing at his watch "Glad you kids had fun, but Star and I have a date." he said proudly. Starfire blushed and giggled. Robin put his hand on her waist and led her to the garage. Leaving Beast boy to glare at Cyborg.

"So did ya kiss her?" he asked again. Beast boy rolled his eyes and closed the steel doors.

"Our friends." Raven said sarcastically. Beast boy smiled.

"So you had a good time?" he asked, just to be sure. Raven smiled.

"I had a great time. Thank you so much Beast boy, for everything." she said. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. With that she turned to walk down the hall to her room. Leaving a flustered Beast boy to hold the place on his cheek where she kissed him with a dreamy smile.

"Dude you forget. My eye has X-ray vision. I just saw her kiss you. Man you did kiss her didn't you!" came Cyborg's muffled voice through the steel door. Beast boy scowled and walked in to yell at his 'Best Friend'.

Raven who had heard what Cyborg said merely rolled her eyes and kept walking. She could hear the muffled sounds of Cyborg and Beast boy arguing…again. She could just see it though. Sooner or later Cyborg "the big brother" would site Beast boy "her boyfriend" down and give him a stern talk on how if he were to break her heart, they would kill him. Boyfriend, that word rang in her ears. She couldn't believe it. She could actually say that she had a boyfriend. And though she was happy for Robin and Starfire, it was inevitable. But her and Beast boy…that was totally unexpected.

She punched in her code to open her locked door and walked in. She used her powers to get a vase out of one of her drawers and placed her flower in it. The white Rose was sparkling slightly due the enchantment placed upon it. Raven lay on her bed and stared at her ceiling. This was the exact same place where Beast boy had given her the necklace and she had put it on for the first time.

Her fingers drew up to the raven shaped pendant and they enclosed around it. Who knew, who could ever know, that her life would have been changed completely and for the better, because of a little Dragon Bone.

**End **


End file.
